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[0:00] Just finished the seven churches, and I'm not going to name them all because I can never remember them in order. But the last one was Laodicea. You know, if you just, if you're reading through the book and you're taking it as it comes, we read the Gospels.

[0:16] We just kind of take it as it comes. You look at Mark. Mark does not deal a lot with Jesus's life in Judea. You look at John, and it's a ton of his life in Judea.

[0:28] Each one a little different perspective. But none of them so much that you're reading in John chapter 4 and is talking about the end of Jesus's life, and then it jumps to the middle, and then it jumps to the end, it jumps to the beginning.

[0:40] It's very, it's in order. It's very cyclical, very rhythmic. I'm not cyclical, rhythmic. You know, and I think as we've gone through Revelation so far, we've kind of stepped through it piece by piece.

[0:53] And it's all made sense. And it's all fit. John told us in the beginning that Jesus had commanded him to write the things, in verse 19 of chapter 1, write the things which thou hast seen, which are, and which shall be hereafter.

[1:10] And he did that. He wrote the things which he had seen. He saw Jesus. He saw the one that was a hair like wool, and the eyes like fire, and the feet like brass. And then he wrote the things that are in chapters 2 and 3, the seven churches.

[1:25] When we get to chapter 4 and you continue to read, there's no reason to come to chapter 4 and go, oh, well, now this is completely different. Now that we get to chapter 4, we're just going to throw out that entire model.

[1:36] We're not going to take the Bible as it comes to us. We're not going to take it serious. You know, people say, do you take the Bible literal?

[1:47] And I've read there's, I can't remember his name, but a liberal theologian, he said, well, I take the Bible too serious to take it literal. Well, no. I said, well, do you take it serious?

[1:59] Do you take it literally? Well, I think I take the Bible believably. Man, I believe it. I read it and I believe it. Where it's serious, it's serious.

[2:09] Where it's literal, it's literal. But I take the Bible believably. I believe that God wrote it down in a way that I can read it and understand it and believe it and accept it and it'll change my life.

[2:20] I don't think he's trying to hide anything. In 1 Corinthians, chapter 15, text wall. I've tried to break them up some.

[2:31] I'm trying, Keller. Paul says, but some men will say, how are the dead raised? You fool. That which you sow is not quickened except to die.

[2:45] It doesn't come to life except you plant it. And that which you sow, you do not sow the body that shall be, but bear grain. It may be wheat or some other grain, but God gives it a body as it's pleased him to every seed his own body.

[2:58] I don't sow apple seeds and grow apple seeds. Right? It doesn't work that way. In nature, it teaches us that. And Paul is saying, some will say, well, how are the dead raised? How does this resurrection work?

[3:10] You know. If you back up in that chapter, in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul says, answering this question, the beginning of this question, Now, if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say among you, some of you, that there is no resurrection of the dead?

[3:32] But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ be not risen, then your faith is also, then our preaching and your faith is also in vain.

[3:43] Right? He'll say a couple of verses down in 1 Corinthians 15. 15. And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain. You are yet in your sins.

[3:55] Then they also, which are fallen asleep in Christ, are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. You know, you say, well, I have Jesus. Jesus makes my life wonderful.

[4:07] Jesus has given me a home and a family and peace and taken away condemnation. Fantastic. Go to heaven. But that's not just for this life. You say, well, you know, when you die, people go to heaven and that's where they are and it's wonderful.

[4:20] Well, no. No, no, no, no. If there's no resurrection of the dead, if the body that's sown doesn't come back as another body, another fulfillment of what the sowing of that seed was, well, Paul says that we're most miserable.

[4:33] We have no hope. The resurrection is our hope. The rapture of the church is the hope of the church because it is the resurrection of the church.

[4:44] And spoilers, I believe this is a rapture of the church because I believe that's what the Bible says. I believe that's what Paul's saying in 1 Corinthians 15. Without the resurrection, take out the word rapture if you don't like it. The rapture is not anywhere in the Bible.

[4:56] The resurrection is. The resurrection is our hope. Titus 2.13, Paul says, looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. Why?

[5:07] Because when Jesus appears, we're resurrected. The fulfillment of our hope. Our hope is not in this life. Our hope is not, well, my sins are forgiven.

[5:18] Well, yes, my sins are forgiven at the cross so that I can have resurrection through Jesus' resurrection. That is my hope. So do I take the Bible literally? Do I take it seriously?

[5:29] Well, I take it believably. And I believe that God will fulfill the word that he's spoken. So John finishes in chapter 3, writing to the seven churches.

[5:40] And then faithfully, he continues to write the experiences he's had as we enter into verse 1 here. He says, after this. We're going to see that after this is going to pop up twice here.

[5:54] After this. After these things. What things? Well, we just talked about that. Revelation 119. Write the things which you have seen, which are, and which shall be hereafter.

[6:07] So after what things? Well, he's writing the things that what? Were. That are. For him. He's writing to the church. The things that are. So he says, after the things that are.

[6:17] So for us, we're still in the age of the church. He's writing about what comes after the church. After these things, I looked.

[6:27] You know, we've talked about how John wasn't told to paint a picture or take a picture. You know, he sees, but then he writes. He sees, but then he uses words to describe the truth that he sees.

[6:38] For John, the message and mission of the church had ended. And his eyes were now turning to what was next. He says, I looked after this.

[6:51] After the message and mission of the church. After that age. After that time. I now turned and I looked. His eyes were to turn to what was next. And what did he see?

[7:05] And a door was opened in heaven. And the first voice, which I heard, was as it were a trumpet talking with me. Which said, come up hither. And I will show you these things, which must be hereafter.

[7:18] He says, after this, I looked. And then a voice is telling him, come and see the things that are after. The after. In Luke 21, 28, Jesus says, speaking to those specifically.

[7:34] This is a word to those who will be at the time of Jacob's trouble. At the time of the tribulation. When you begin to see these things come to pass. What things? The abomination of desolation.

[7:45] When you see the Antichrist. When you see those things come to pass. Look up. Lift up your heads. Your redemption draws near. How much more does it apply to us as well? When we are seeing the formation of those things.

[7:56] Then how much closer for us is our snatching away? But we see three things here. You know, as we've looked through the seven churches. At the beginning of each of the letters to the churches.

[8:09] We always have a description of Jesus. And it's no different right here. Because John sees three things. He says, I see an open door. I heard a voice. And there's one that said to me.

[8:20] I will show you the things hereafter. One who is in the hereafter. Who can say to John. I'm going to show you what's to come. Jesus. In Revelation 3.

[8:31] Verse 8. We know that Jesus is a door. He would say, I know your works. Behold, I've set before you an open door. And no man can shut it.

[8:41] We know in John chapter 10. Verse 7. Jesus says, I am the door of the sheep. So as John looks and he sees a door in heaven. Well, what is the doorway by which we are entering into heaven?

[8:53] What is the only door that opens to us into heaven? Well, it's Jesus. There's no other door. He wasn't coming in the back door. Or the side door. And no, it wasn't Peter at the pearly gates.

[9:05] And he heard a voice. This voice that he hears. In Revelation chapter 1.

[9:17] John said that he heard behind him a voice. And he turned. And that's when he sees the image of Jesus at that time. The one to come. And the Alpha and Omega.

[9:28] First and the last. The beginning and the end. John sees this door. A promised door was opened in heaven. By which John. A faithful sheep of the shepherd.

[9:40] Was being ushered through. Jesus had promised that door to the church. In Revelation chapter 3 verse 8. I know your works. Behold, I've set before you an open door.

[9:50] He says to Philadelphia. Well, John is now entering through a promised door. That he said, I'll set before you an open door. He's entering through the door. As a faithful sheep following his shepherd.

[10:01] He's ushered through. John heard a voice. And that voice is likened to what? Heard as it were a trumpet. Trumpet.

[10:12] John heard something that was clear. It was unmistakable. It was also personal. He says, I looked. And the voice which I heard was as it were a trumpet.

[10:25] Talking with me. Specifically. This is personal. It's very specific. And it's also present. It's now.

[10:35] John is experiencing this now. He says, hey, the things which were before, they've already come. The things which are hereafter are going to be shown me. But in this moment, there's a voice as a trumpet that's clear and mistakable, personal, specific, and present.

[10:47] Because verse 2 starts, and immediately. Verse 1 Corinthians 15, 52 tells us, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump, for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

[11:03] The hope of the resurrection. That's our promise. It'll take place at the time of a trumpet. It will take place immediately. And the dead shall be raised. The message and mission of the church, it is culminating here in the hope of resurrection.

[11:25] Jesus said in John 14, 3, And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also. Jesus is the open door.

[11:37] Jesus is the voice. Jesus is the one who is the first and the last. Telling John, come up hither. 1 Thessalonians 4, verses 16 and 17, For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel.

[11:54] Come up here. Means to, literally, to ascend up here. When he says to John, come up hither. It means ascend up here. Well, the Lord will descend from heaven with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God.

[12:10] And the dead in Christ shall rise first, and then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds. To meet the Lord in the air, so shall we ever be with the Lord. I wonder what this is talking about here.

[12:21] In Revelation chapter 4, with a voice and a trumpet. With John being called to heaven at the end of the letters to the churches. Because, I'm sure it doesn't have anything to do with 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 or 1 Corinthians chapter 15.

[12:34] It's probably talking about something altogether. Notice that the owner of the voice did not come to the earth. But he called those from earth to ascend to where the voice was.

[12:46] He says, ascend up here, where I am. Come to me where I am. As Jesus said, and there you will ever be where I am. The voice didn't come to the earth. He's the one that's hereafter.

[12:59] In Revelation chapter 1, verse 11, one of the first things John writes, he's saying, we hear Jesus saying, saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last. And then in verse 19, write the things which you have seen and which are and which shall be hereafter.

[13:13] Well, only the one who is the last can write about the last things. I can't. I don't know what they are. I can write about what is. I can write about what's been. But I can't write about what's to come.

[13:25] Paul in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, verses 1 through 3. He will say, now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by your gathering together unto him, that you be not soon shaken in mind or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter.

[13:47] That's from us. Is that the day of Christ is at hand? Like, listen, if someone's sending you an email saying, these are signs saying that we're living in the tribulation or Jesus already came and you missed it.

[13:59] Paul's like, that didn't come from me. That's a deception. Let no man deceive you by any means. For that day shall not come, except there come the departing first. Now, it depends on what your Bible may say there.

[14:12] It may not say the departing, but the wording means the departing. It may say the falling away. In the Greek, it's departing. And that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.

[14:25] The word departing was put in there by translators at the time by the Catholic Church because of the Reformation. And so they wanted to emphasize that they had fallen away and that they should come back.

[14:38] But until then, it had been accepted as the departing. That day shall not come, except there come the departing. There must first be a departing before there can be a hereafter. We're going to be in this little space here between chapter 4 and chapter 6 where the church, their mission and message had ended.

[14:59] But yet, God's wrath had not begun yet. And immediately, John says in verse 2, I was in the spirit.

[15:11] Immediately means no ensuing time between events. There is no space between there. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. There's no ensuing time. There's nothing that takes place between that event.

[15:23] Something happens immediately. Well, that means it's the next thing. So John says immediately. The very next thing, I was in the spirit. Immediately means no hesitation.

[15:34] No time to prepare. No further events. It's immediate. In this moment. Immediately, John found himself where? Well, he was in a state to obey the voice.

[15:45] It says he was in the spirit. He could obey that voice. In the moment, in the twinkling of an eye, we shall be changed. We shall be changed into a state to obey the voice that says, come up thither.

[15:58] But just as John was in the spirit, we have to also be in the spirit. Or we're not going to hear that voice. In John chapter 4, the gospel of John, verse 23, John writes, But the hour comes, or Jesus says, John's writing this, And now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth.

[16:20] For the Father seeks such to worship him. God is a spirit. And they that worship him must worship him in spirit and truth. We must be in a state to worship him.

[16:32] Romans 8.10 says, And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is life because of righteousness. John found himself in a state to obey the voice.

[16:42] He was immediately, he was in the spirit. Now this is speaking of John here being in the spirit, not just that, well, he was born again and he had the spirit of God. He was. He's saying here that he was in the spirit now.

[16:53] He was no longer in the state in which you and I find ourselves. Being in the spirit, though, does not mean he was having a spiritual vision. But that John literally was spiritually present at each of these events that took place.

[17:06] As we go through Revelation, it's not like, well, John's laying on Patmos and just having a dream. No, God spiritually took John and John was spiritually present, experiencing every single one of these things from heaven's perspective.

[17:19] He says, I was in the spirit and then I was. Where was he? Before a throne. Behold, a throne was set in heaven and one sat on the throne.

[17:32] Psalm 103.19 says, The Lord has prepared his throne in the heavens and his kingdom rules over all. That's our perspective, earth's perspective. And we're going to see John's perspective from heaven of what all this is as he's taken to heaven, taken to the throne room.

[17:49] But the Lord has prepared his throne in heaven. His kingdom rules over all. Throne literally means a chair of state having a footstool.

[17:59] It's what a throne is. In Psalm 110, verse 1, Romans 8.34, it says, Who is he that condemns?

[18:18] It's Christ that died. Yea, rather that's risen again. Who's even at the right hand of God? Who also makes intercession for us? So there's a throne in heaven, but who's on the throne?

[18:31] Well, so Jesus is at the right hand of God. The Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool. Hebrews 12, chapter 2, Hebrews chapter 12, verse 2.

[18:56] What throne is John seeing here? John's focus was immediate and was upon the throne. And he that sat on that throne was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone.

[19:16] You know, sardine stone, looks like a little fish, comes in a can. Jasper is believed to be a diamond, white. Sardine, that's like sardis.

[19:26] We went to the church of sardis, it's red. So he was to look upon as one white and red. Purity in the blood. Throne. Throne.

[19:37] Throne represents authority. One who has authority. It's the idea of the footstool. And making your enemies your footstool. He has authority. All things are under his feet.

[19:49] And there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. So a green rainbow. And the idea is not just the bow, but the full circle. I don't know what the green means. A lot of people have different ideas.

[20:00] But, John looks and he sees one sitting on the throne with a glory of red and white, like two stones, like these jewels. And he's sitting in a place of authority and promise.

[20:12] Because that's what the rainbow is. You know, we know that. I mean, why is there a rainbow? Why did God make a rainbow? What was the reason? Who do you give it to?

[20:26] Noah. Promise to Noah. You go back and read that, and it's like, it wasn't for Noah. Text wall.

[20:38] He says to Noah, I will establish my covenant with you in Genesis chapter 9, verse 11. Neither shall all flesh be cut off anymore by the waters of a flood. Neither shall there be any more a flood to destroy the earth.

[20:50] And God said, this is the token or the sign of the covenant which I make between me and you, and every living creature that is with you. For perpetual generations, I do set my bow in the cloud. And it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

[21:03] You say, well, wait a minute. This sounds like it's for Noah. I know it does. But if you keep reading. And it shall come to pass when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud. And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh.

[21:19] And the water shall no more become a flood to destroy all the earth. And the bow shall be in the clouds. And I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.

[21:32] Every time you see a rainbow, you're not the only one looking at that. God's looking at that rainbow and going, that's my promise. That is my promise. That I will not break my covenant, destroy the earth with water.

[21:45] God didn't give it to Noah. It was for him. He said, now, I want you to know what this is for. But understand, who's the one who keeps the covenant? Who's the one responsible to look at that? Every single rainbow God looks at.

[21:57] We may miss him. The one who sits on the throne, he sits in authority and promise. And he also has the authority to fulfill all promises.

[22:07] This is who John sees as he shows up immediately in heaven. The one seated on the throne. When John looked at the throne, he saw glory. A glory that was red and white.

[22:20] He saw authority and he saw promise. John's eyes are riveted on that throne. He doesn't tell us what he looks like. Can you just a little sketch? No, he doesn't tell us that.

[22:32] It's enough for us to know God's glory and God's authority and God's promise. We don't need to know what he looks like. And round about the throne, so John's gaze now begins to broaden.

[22:43] It begins to widen out a little. And he looks round about the throne. And there are four and 20 seats. And upon the seats, I saw 24 elders sitting, clothed in white raiment.

[22:56] And they had on their head crowns of gold. And this is what I mean. If you've been tracking, you know, you're reading through Revelation and you're studying through and you've got the seven churches and you begin to understand what Jesus is saying to the seven churches and the promises he has to them, the exhortations he has to them.

[23:13] And then you get to this verse. It jumps off the page to you. John's view begins at the throne and he sees everything in relation to the throne.

[23:24] Round about means on all sides. And then he sees these 24 elders. What do they have? They have thrones. That means they have what? They have authority.

[23:37] They have a place. There's a place for them. There's 24 thrones, 24 elders. It wasn't 25. That one guy's got to stand. Can I have a turn now? You know, they rotate. And what were they doing?

[23:50] They were sitting. It means they're at rest. They had received honor. They had a crown on their head. They've received a new garment.

[24:00] They're clothed in white. And they sat in the presence of glory and promise. The one with the authority to make and keep promises.

[24:12] What did he promise the church? Well, in Revelation 3, 21, he promised them they'd be seated. To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with me in my throne. Even as I also overcame and am set down with my father in his throne.

[24:26] We just read about Jesus where he's sitting at the right hand of the throne of God. He says, hey, him that overcomes will be seated where? With me in my throne. Here's 24 thrones around the throne.

[24:37] The promise that they would be clothed in white. That was to Laodicea in Revelation 3, 21. To Sardis, Revelation 3, 4. Thou has a few names, even as Sardis, which have not defiled their garments, and they shall walk with me in white, for they are worthy.

[24:57] As we went through and saw in the letter to the church of Sardis. In Revelation 2, verse 10, to Smyrna we read, Fear none of those things, which thou shalt suffer.

[25:11] Behold, the devil will cast some of you into prison, that you may be tried, and you shall have tribulation ten days. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life. As we've seen the church in the letter to the seven churches.

[25:24] A crown. Philadelphia, Revelation 3, 11. Behold, I come quickly. Hold that, hold fast what you have, that no man take your crown.

[25:42] And you get to this verse, And round about the throne with four and twenty seats, and upon the seats four and twenty elders sitting clothed in white raiment, and they had on their head crowns of gold. You cannot help, if you've just gone through Revelation 1, 2, and 3, to be like, well this is everything Jesus was just talking about.

[25:57] This must be the church. How were they seated? Well Paul tells us in Ephesians 2, 6, that Christ has raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

[26:13] How were they seated? Because Jesus put them there. He's the one who set them there. How were they robed? In Revelation chapter 7, verse 9, After this, behold, and lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues, stood before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white and palms in their hands.

[26:36] He jumped down to verse 13, and one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these, which are arrayed in white robes? And where did they come from? And I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation.

[26:50] These are the saints that will be martyred during the tribulation. That's not the church, but he's going to give us some information on how you get a white robe. And have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

[27:02] Therefore are they before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple. And he that sits on the throne shall dwell among them. How do they get those white robes? They're washed in the blood of the Lamb.

[27:14] What about their crowns? Where did that come from? These people, these 24 elders sitting before the throne. Who are they? Well, they have crowns. Where'd they get them? Second Timothy 4.8, Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, Paul says, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me that day.

[27:30] Jesus put that crown on their head. And not to me only, but to all them that love is appearing. What's that moment going to be like? When Jesus says, hey, kneel down. I want to give you a crown.

[27:41] No, Lord. He's going to be like Peter. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You're not going to wash me. Look, if I don't wash you, you're going to have no part in me. Okay, wash my whole body. These 24 elders, they represent a very specific group of God's creation.

[27:57] We're going to look at some interesting creatures as we go through this. But this group alone is a very specific group. Revelation chapter 5, verse 9. Speaking of the 24 elders, they sang a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, speaking of the Lamb, and to open the seals thereof.

[28:17] For you were slain and have redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation. There is only one group of God's creation that has been redeemed by blood.

[28:31] And that's the church. It's his bride. And that's these 24 elders. The trumpet call, then, to John, as he hears this call at the end of the church age here, came after the things of the church.

[28:46] They're over. It came before wrath. We won't see wrath until chapter 6 when the scroll is opened. There is no mention of the church after chapter 4 again.

[28:59] And there's no mention of these thrones again until chapter 20 of Revelation. I saw horses. I saw thrones. And they that sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.

[29:13] I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. This is before the thousand-year reign.

[29:23] John says, I saw thrones again at that time. And they that sat on them, and judgment was given unto them. This is the next time thrones are mentioned. We also see the trumpet call came to do what?

[29:37] To fill thrones. The church, the things of the church are over. May you tell some people that? You know the church is going to end. No, the church will never end. The church will end.

[29:48] There's a purpose for the church. The people of the church don't end. But the church does. The purpose of the body of the church on this world. The culmination of the church on the earth is its exit, not its reign.

[30:07] There's a group of people today that would say, well, the culmination of the church on earth is that it's going to reign. No, the culmination of the church is that it exits. That's our culmination, that we have an exit, that there's a resurrection.

[30:18] The church doesn't come back to the earth. The redeemed come back to judge the earth, but we'll not be the church in the capacity that we are now.

[30:30] The arrival of the church in heaven is the establishment of its reign. It's the beginning of the church's reign when the church gets to heaven. The church isn't reigning now. The church culminates in an exit, it arrives in heaven, and it's seated on thrones and it begins to reign at that point.

[30:44] The next time it comes to earth, you'll see the people of the church reigning. And out of the throne, John then says, okay, it's getting a little broader. He sees the throne, he sees around the throne, and he says, and now there's like things coming out of the throne.

[30:59] And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices. There are seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. Never say that it's unscriptural to have lights and a fog machine and a lot of noise in your worship service.

[31:23] The presence of God. We're going to see this when we get to Exodus 19, when Moses goes up onto the mountain to the Mount of God. And it came to pass on the third day in the morning that there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud upon the mountain and the voice of what?

[31:39] The trumpet. Exceeding loud so that all the people that were in the camp trembled. Everything in Revelation is somewhere else in the Bible. Sorry, it's going to take us so long.

[31:51] The Old Testament is not directly quoted anywhere in Revelation, but everything in Revelation goes back to somewhere in the Bible. It's the culmination. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with who?

[32:04] With God. And they stood at the nether part of the mountain. They stood around the edge of the mountain. Psalm 18, verses 8, 13 and 14.

[32:18] There went up a smoke out of his nostrils and fire out of his mouth devoured. Coals were kindled by it. The Lord also thundered in the heavens and the highest gave his voice. Hailstones and coals of fire.

[32:29] This is earth's perspective. John's seeing heaven's perspective. David, writing here, seeing the earth's perspective of when God's presence comes into our world. Hailstones and coals of fire.

[32:41] Yea, he sent out his arrows and scattered them as lightning. And he shot out lightnings and discomfited them. John's focus will always return back to the throne, right?

[32:51] He begins to look around it and then he's going, he's right back to the throne. The throne is a place of power and the throne is to be approached with awe, care, and reverence.

[33:02] You're not going to just come charging into the presence of this throne. And then what proceeds from the throne? Well, it's seen, there's lightnings, it's heard, there's thunders, and there's voices, it's understood coming from this throne.

[33:20] It's interesting because in Revelation 10, you know, we'll have the seal judgments and the trumpet judgments and the bowl judgments and there's the thunders, but we don't know what those are because in Revelation 10, verse 4, and when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered and write them not.

[33:48] I don't know what that means. Don't lay awake thinking about it. But this is what's proceeding from the throne. That which can be seen, heard, and understood.

[33:59] And then he says, and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne. And he gives us the interpretation, which are the seven spirits of God. Before the throne, seven lamps of fire continually burning.

[34:13] And if you remember, we looked before at those seven spirits. We know in Revelation chapter 1, verse 4, John to the seven churches which are in Asia, grace be unto you and peace from him which was, which is, and which is to come.

[34:26] And from the seven spirits which are before his throne. Which alludes back to Isaiah 11, 2. Not there are seven holy spirits, but the seven full-fold aspect of the holy spirit.

[34:37] The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him. The spirit of wisdom and understanding, of counsel and might, of knowledge, and of the fear of the Lord. Revelation 3, verse 1 also alludes to this.

[34:50] And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write, these things sayeth he that has the seven spirits of God. Who's the one saying this? Jesus is writing the churches. We find out he has the seven spirits of God.

[35:02] Well, in Revelation 5, when we're introduced to the lamb who looked as though he'd been slain before the foundation of the world, when that lamb comes on the scene, John says, and I beheld and lo in the midst of the throne are the four beasts and in the midst of the elders, we'll get to the four beasts later, stood a lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

[35:29] Seven spirits. Jesus says he has the seven spirits and this is before the throne. The seven lamps or spirits, what do they do? Well, they illuminate, they burn, they're perpetual and lastly, they're a barrier to the throne.

[35:45] One cannot get to the throne without first passing through the spirit, the seven old spirit of the Lord. The Holy Spirit illuminates, it burns, it's perpetual, he will give us a comforter who will be with us always and that spirit is a barrier to the throne.

[36:02] You're not getting to the throne except through the Holy Spirit. There are four aspects of the spirit when he shows up that he's visible. I can look at them all of course, but he comes as a dove when he descends upon Jesus in Matthew 3.16 and Jesus is anointed for ministry in Acts 2.3 comes to the church as fire and the sound of a rushing wind but wind's not visible and then as lamps here in Revelation 4.5 and eyes in Revelation 5.6.

[36:33] The hour comes and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father and Spirit and truth. He says, and before the throne, so we had around the throne, we had the throne, the one on the throne, we had around the throne and now we had before the throne, the Spirit and now we have again in before the throne, there was a sea of glass like under crystal.

[36:54] Now as a kid, I used to think, what? Good. It's a giant glass sea. What can you do? You skip rocks and clink, clink, clink, clink, clink, clink, clink, clink, you know? Well, it says like under crystal.

[37:08] Many times, you know, you can look out at a body of water and say, wow, it's like glass. A sea like under crystal. Psalm 93, beginning in verse 2, says, your throne is established of old.

[37:24] You are from everlasting. The floods have lifted up, O Lord. The floods have lifted up their voice. The floods lift up their waves. The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.

[37:40] God is the one. who calms the sea. Isaiah 51, 15, but I am the Lord thy God that divided the sea whose waves roared. The Lord of hosts is his name.

[37:54] And we know when Jesus had entered into the ship, his disciples followed him and they headed across the sea and a great tempest came up and Jesus was sleeping and they woke him up and they said, Master, don't you care that we perish?

[38:07] And he stood up and he calmed the waves. And there arose a great tempest and so much the ship was covered with the waves but he was asleep and his disciples came to him and awoke him saying, Lord, save us, we perish.

[38:21] And he said unto them, why are you fearful, O you little faith? Then he arose, rebuked the winds and sea and there was a great calm. And if you were standing there that day in one of those little ships that says in Mark and there were other little ships with him, you would have looked, you said, man, it's like glass.

[38:37] It went from a storm and now it's a sea like glass. But the men marveled saying, what manner of man is this? That even the winds and the sea obey him. Before God's throne all storms cease.

[38:49] No trials or trouble will ever cause one ripple upon the sea of heaven. It's always calm. There are no storms there. But what do we see about heaven? Well, heaven will be very loud, very brilliant and very still.

[39:05] Be a wonderful place. very loud, thunders, voices, very brilliant, but very still a sea of glass.

[39:21] And around about the throne were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. So Beauty and the Beast, he had three brothers. It was all for him. It's an unfortunate translation.

[39:33] It just means living creature. There were four living creatures. John didn't have any way to describe them. They weren't human. He said they are four living creatures. They're alive. There's something very interesting about them.

[39:44] He says they are full of eyes before and behind and next time we get together for study we'll read much more about them and see who they are. But teaser, they're cherubim.

[39:55] We're going to find that out from Ezekiel. Satan was also a cherubim. He was the highest of the cherubim who stood before the throne of God. They're full of eyes meaning they are super perceptive, super intelligent and have super sight.

[40:10] Right? Artificial intelligence ain't got nothing on these guys. So then you like and you think of Satan being a cherubim. Super perceptive, super intelligent and a super sight.

[40:22] Jesus would tell the disciples in Matthew 13, 16 blessed are your eyes for they see in your ears or they hear because we have eyes that are super perceptive as well.

[40:33] But spiritually, I think. Paul would write in Ephesians chapter 1 beginning in verse 17 his prayer to the Ephesians he says that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of glory I pray that he may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation and the knowledge of him the eyes of your understanding being enlightened that our eyes would be open.

[40:55] There are many created beings and they each have their own purpose. What we read about in scripture God tells us what he wants to tell about about them. Maybe we're going to get there and find out there's some other created beings.

[41:07] Don't know. But only one type of being as we said has been redeemed. We are the only ones of God's creation that have been redeemed.

[41:20] No matter how super amazing super powerful super intelligent whatever we're the only ones who've been redeemed. No matter what other beings of his creation there may be.

[41:35] So as we end this section everything we've seen tonight is viewed in relation to the throne. On the throne around the throne before the throne in the midst or literally that means under the throne.

[41:46] We'll see that next time from Ezekiel that the four beasts they are also they're before and they're under. The message of revelation and the message of the Bible is not an earth-centric message.

[41:57] It's a throne-centered message. Not even a heaven-centered message. It's a throne-centered message. The one that's on the throne gets our focus. For you and I there is a place that we can go where all storms are calm.

[42:10] Remember I said you had to come before that throne with oh you can't just rush before it. Well because of Jesus we can come boldly under the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

[42:22] We're to live throne-centered lives. Lives that are always focused on the throne and coming back to the throne. Revelation 4 sets the tone for the rest of the book.

[42:34] If you don't understand who these people are and what they're here for then we will not understand the rest of the book. The church comes to an end.

[42:51] The church age comes to an end. But the people of the church don't. Its purpose ends. Its people never do. Right? That's our hope that resurrection. Our hope is an ending.

[43:02] Our hope is an exit. Our hope is that all of this will be well that's what came before. After this. Someday we'll all stand there and we'll say hey this is after that.

[43:17] Remember that? Those were good times. This is better. This is a lot better. You know we're also looking at a picture of the very epicenter of heaven. We're looking at the control room of heaven.

[43:29] Think I don't know 24 thrones. How are we all going to fit on those 24 thrones? Are we going to share them? What are we going to do? But this is a picture of John's perspective as best as he can relay to us of God's command center is what we're seeing of heaven.

[43:43] The very center of God's decision making and God's will going out into the world. When we see the line of the tribe of Judah when we see the lamb that was slain before the foundation of the world and we see him opening the seals this is the very center of what God is doing.

[43:59] And he has us there? And he brings John there? He's got these beasts with all these eyes and wings and things and man we're going to feel out of place.

[44:11] No we're not going to feel out of place because Jesus put us in our place. And Father we don't have to feel out of place even now in this world Lord. We do many times talking to people talking with a co-worker today and he's asking me what I was doing tonight and I told him and he just kind of looked at me.

[44:29] He said are you Catholic? I said no I'm not Catholic. Lord we can feel out of place but if we have a throne centric life Lord if our focus always comes back to the throne if we're always coming before that throne boldly before the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need then Lord our lives will be right where they should be.

[44:50] You will put them in their place. You will seat us Lord where we should be and Lord you'll give us a right understanding and a right perspective because you have given us eyes to see ears to hear and a heart to understand.

[45:01] Because we have that wonderful Holy Spirit of God so complete so full in his understanding and you've given him to us. Lord as we go through this book Lord as we see the the church no longer on earth.

[45:14] Why? Because its mission's complete. Its purpose has ended and because our hope has been fulfilled and it's culminated in an exit. Lord how perfect as we're going through Exodus.

[45:27] Deliverance results in an exit. But Lord you never take us out without also bringing us in. So we say come quickly Lord Jesus. Come and fulfill that wonderful promise that you will take us to be where you are.

[45:39] We long to meet with you in the air Lord. We long to hear that voice like the trumpet. We love you Jesus. Thank you for that wonderful glory. The glory that outshines the sun Lord. The glory of the jasper and the sardine stone.

[45:52]  The glory of the red and the white. We thank you. In your name we pray. Amen.