The Lamb on the Cross Has Become the Lion on the Throne (2)

Introduction

Ordinarily on Easter Sunday, I like to somewhat put the people who are listening to me on a time machine and go back to that first resurrection day. I like to go to narratives that describe what it was like on that day, what it would have been like to go with the women as they went to dress the dead body of Jesus, worried about who’s gonna move the stone, and to see the look on their faces when the stone’s already removed and the angel gave the message: “He is risen. Why are you looking for the living among the dead? He’s not here.” And just to be there and experience it, that would have been something.

Or to be with Peter and John as they heard the news and they ran toward the empty tomb, and they saw the physical evidence of the resurrection, the grave clothes laying there, perhaps in a cocoon, in the shape of the body of Jesus, the head covering folded up neatly off to the side, the stone, the massive stone removed from the entrance by a supernatural force, the whole scene just proclaiming he is risen from the dead. Oh just to be there and see the physical artifacts, that would have been something.

Or to be with the disciples on the road to Emmaus, wouldn’t that have been something? Best of all, those personal encounters with the risen Lord. To be able to have a conversation with Jesus, they didn’t even know it was him. And their hearts are burning as they hear the word of God from Jesus’s own lips. And it’s only when they sit down at table with Jesus and he breaks the bread, that their eyes are opened, and they realize that it’s Christ, and instantly he’s taken away from them. Just to sit with those two disciples, let’s make it three disciples or five, and just be able to see the risen Lord, I would love to be able to do that

And so that’s how I like to preach usually on Easter Sunday, because I believe with all my heart, it really happened in space and time. There was a time, there was a body, there was an empty tomb, there were eyewitnesses. It all happened. He has risen. It actually occurred. And it’s so important for us to realize that that is the truth, and that our faith is established on the unshakable fact of the empty tomb of the resurrection of Christ.

So I like to do that on Easter Sunday. But this morning, I feel led to take you on a different journey, perhaps one of the most incredible journeys that any prophet has ever taken. The Apostle John in exile on the Island of Patmos, having a vision on the Lord’s day of the resurrected Christ in his glory, in a way they didn’t see him while he ministered on earth, and to hear his voice like the sound of rushing waters, great power.

And then in Revelation 4, he sees a door standing open in heaven, and a command that it’s absolutely impossible for us unaided by supernatural power to obey, but John got the command, “Come up here and I will show you what must take place after this,” and at once, John says, “I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.” That’s the center of my life. That’s the center of my theology, a heavenly throne and someone sitting on it. That is the Ancient of Days. That is the Almighty Heavenly Father. He’s sitting on the throne. He is the God of creation in Revelation 4, and there are 24 elders surrounding that throne, and they are continually giving praise and glory and honor to the God who created all things. Revelation 4, the picture of God the Creator, the king sitting on the throne.

I wanna take you, not back in time therefore, but somewhat outside of time, and also mystically and prophetically ahead in time to the future. Outside of time and ahead of time, to see not what Jesus looked like the morning he was raised, but what he will look like when we see him in heaven, when he will be glorified before our very eyes, and we get to worship him for eternity. Because even then there was still work to be done, even that first resurrection morning, there’s still a journey to be traveled. There’s Mary holding on to his feet, and Jesus has to say, “Let go of me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. There’s still some work to be done here.” But how about when there’s no more work to be done? How about when Jesus is in his glory, when he’s on the throne, and we get to be with him, with a countless multitude from every tribe and language and people and nation around the throne, giving glory and praise to Christ? How about then? Oh, how my heart yearns for that day. And I look forward to it. And this resurrection morning, the first one, that was just the most important step in a long journey that will be fulfilled for all of us by the power of the Spirit.

So let’s go outside of time, let’s go ahead of time, and let’s see in Revelation Chapter 5, a picture of the resurrected and glorified Christ in prophetic perspective, a picture of Jesus on his throne. Four things focused our attention in this chapter. There is a scroll in the hand of Almighty God. Secondly, there is a proclamation by the angel about the scroll. Thirdly, there is a lamb receiving the scroll, and fourthly, there is honor and glory given by all creation to the lamb who receives the scroll. That’s the four-part outline of this chapter, Revelation chapter 5.

I. The Scroll: God’s Plan for Redemption and Judgment for the Earth

The Scroll Described

Let’s begin with the scroll. It says in verse one, “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.” That is the scroll described. The Greek word is “biblos,” could be just a book, but it’s probably a scroll, rolled up.

And it’s in the right hand of someone who’s sitting on a throne. The one sitting on the throne is none other than God Almighty, the God who created heaven and earth. And so he sits on his throne in heavenly glory, and in his right hand there is this scroll. And the scroll must be a very precious thing indeed, for it’s in the right hand of God, and it is the focal point of all heaven at that moment. All of heaven is focused on that scroll. It must be a very precious thing indeed to be in the right hand of God.

The Scroll Interpreted

And it says that there’s writing on both sides. We don’t know how John could know this, but he knew it, just like you know something in a dream, you just know. And there’s writing on both sides of the scroll. This implies that it’s a complete and total record of full accounts, nothing more can be added, and because it is the writing of God, nothing can be removed. It is a perfect writing, perfectly complete. No room to add to it, and nothing can be taken away from it. This must be, therefore, the redemptive plan of Almighty God, culminating in the ownership of heaven and earth, the title deed of the universe with the plan to get there, it is the redemptive plan of Almighty God.

And it says that it’s sealed with seven seals. Seal implies ownership and authority. It forbids anyone to break open the scroll and look inside if they don’t have that right. There’s a sense of punishment to any that break open the seal if they’re not worthy to do it. Now, the seven seals, the number seven in the Book of Revelation is a mystical number, signifying deity, signifying the actions of God. It’s a complete sealing of the scroll, and what’s inside is a complete mystery. And so it’s completely sealed. No one can pry up a corner and look inside, get a little glimpse. It’s impossible. It’s completely sealed.

And based on what happens in Revelation 6 through 8, when the seven seals are opened, the scroll, in my opinion, is probably progressively sealed, rolled up a little and sealed, rolled up a little more and sealed again, rolled up a little more until it is sealed seven times. And so as you break open one of the seals, a little more is revealed. And so it unfolds. Now, this scroll, as I’ve said, is the eternal plan for the redemption of heaven and earth. It is, as some commentators have called it, the title deed of the earth.

And as the seals are broken, this plan is unfolded before us in the Book of Revelation. And thus it is with God’s sovereign plan written in his hand before the foundation of the world, it remains in the mind of God a secret until he chooses to reveal it. And so it says in Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever.” And so here is a secret thing in the right hand of God.

II. The Angel’s Proclamation: Who is Worthy?

The Nature of the Proclamation

Secondly, we notice the angel’s proclamation concerning the scroll. Look at verse two, “And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?’” Look at the nature of the proclamation. The task is entrusted not just to any angel, but to a mighty angel. Now, to us mortals, to us weak people, any angel is a mighty angel, but this must be a truly mighty being, to be entrusted with this job of proclaiming. He is a mighty and a powerful angel, perhaps more powerful than other angels. The proclamation is made with a loud voice so that it can be heard across all of creation. And the proclamation is a question, and the question rings out over all of time in history, “Who is worthy? Who is worthy?”

In one version of the legend of King Arthur, there’s a story of Excalibur, the sword, and it’s stuck in an anvil, which is in a boulder, in a stone, a sword in a stone, and there’s inscribed on it, “Who so pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil, is right-wise born king of all England.” You know the story, how Sir Kay is going to a jousting tournament, he has a little squire named Arthur, and Arthur is forgetful, he’ll do better when he’s a king later, but he forgot his knight’s sword. That’s pretty big. You’re going to lose any jousting when you don’t have your sword. Because when you’re both de-horsed and you’re standing there with nothing in your hands, you lose.

So he’s in trouble, he needs a sword, Arthur realizes he’s in big trouble. He happened to notice, strangely, a sword sticking out of a stone. Goes out, pulls it out without any trouble and brings it into Sir Kay who recognizes it immediately. That’s the sword that was in the stone. He said, “Where’d you get this?” He said, “It was just outside. It was in a stone somewhere. I don’t know why it was there, but there it was.” Sir Kay is amazed. They go out, they put it back in, and Sir Kay is not able to pull the sword from the stone, neither is anyone else. Arthur does it easily and repeatedly. And thus it is identified that he is right-wise born king of all England. Now, that’s a myth. It’s a legend. It almost certainly never happened.

This is no myth, friends. This is no legend. Whoever has the right to take this scroll from the right hand of Almighty God is right-wise born king of all creation. And the question is, who is worthy to do it? Who has the right to take it from the right hand of God? That’s the question.

The Purposes of the Proclamation

Now, there are many purposes for the mighty angel’s proclamation. First of all, to display the greatness of the task of taking the scroll, breaking open its seals and opening it, it is a great task, and not everyone is worthy to do this task. The taking of the scroll from the right hand of him who sits on the throne implies the right to rule heaven and earth. The opening of the scroll seal by seal implies the right to govern the development of God’s redemptive plan. Under whose hand can this plan develop? The one who can break open the seals and open it. The rights and privileges of taking the scroll and opening it are greatly dramatized by the pomp and circumstance of this cry by the angel: “Who is worthy?”

Secondly, the proclamation also displays very vividly the disqualification of all the rest of creation, of all of creation, disqualified. Look at verse three, “But no one in heaven or on earth, or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it.” Friends, this involves every single human being that has ever lived. All the mightiest emperors, from Alexander the Great through Caesar and Genghis Khan, Napoleon, right on through, none of them are worthy to take the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. All the wisest philosophers, whether Socrates or Plato or Aristotle, or Descartes, right on through, none of them are wise enough, none of them are worthy to take the scroll. All of the greatest scientists and inventors, whether Archimedes or Pythagoras or Einstein, Edison, none of them are worthy to take the scroll and look inside.

Even the humble unknowns, the humble servants, the ones that no one knows their name, the ones that have lived a life of love and service to their fellow men, all of them are disqualified. Not one of them is worthy. Whether famous or non-famous, none of them are worthy. Even among the godliest believers of the Bible, whether Abel or Enoch or Job, or Abraham, Isaac or Jacob, whether King David or Solomon, right on through the prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, none of the Apostles of the Lamb, none of the great figures of church history, it didn’t matter. Even the martyrs who shed their blood to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ, those that died in the coliseum in Rome, mauled by lions, or the reformers, they’re all of them disqualified, every last one. Even John himself who gave us this book, the apocalypse, the Book of Revelation, he would not dare cross that space and go forward to the throne of God and take from his right hand the scroll. He wouldn’t dare do it.

Let me get really personal. You are disqualified. I am disqualified. We’re not worthy, not one of us. And why is it? For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We’re all sinners, every last one of us. We have, all of us, this in common, and we are disqualified from taking the scroll. But we can go beyond that. All of the angels, holy as they are, who have never sinned, who have only obeyed God, even the mighty angel who’s doing the proclaiming, the angels are all disqualified, all of them, because this must go to the Son of Man, who is the Son of God, and none of them are the Son of Man. They’re all disqualified.

So the angel’s proclamation heightens the sense of anticipation and also of grief. Look at verse four, “I wept and wept,” said John, “Because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside.” John is reacting, “Is there no one? Is there no one who can take the scroll?” And he weeps and weeps. And the proclamation therefore displays the greatness of Jesus Christ, does it not? Then there’s a dramatic pause, and everyone that has ever lived is disqualified, and all of the holy angels and the 24 elders and the living creatures, all of them disqualified. And then up steps Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, and he has the right to do it. Does this not display the greatness of Jesus Christ? Isn’t that the purpose of the proclamation?

Look at verse five, “Then one of the elders said to me, do not weep, behold the lion of the tribe of Judah. The root of David has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” He is able, he is able to take the scroll, he’s able to break open its seals, he is able to govern history, 20 centuries of it and more, he is able to do it, and he is able to save your soul and mine. He is able to save us. And he is able to hold our attention for all eternity, so that we will be worshipping him forever and ever. As new waves of revelation come and we learn more and more about our great Savior, he is able to take the scroll and open its seals. And so we see this lion who has triumphed, victorious lion.

III. A Lamb on the Cross

The Lamb Predestined

You think he would have some great appearance, some dreadful and terrifying appearance, but instead, he looks and he sees a lamb looking as if it had been slain. And so we have this vision of the Lion who is the Lamb, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Lamb looking as if it had been slain. This is the Lamb who is Jesus Christ. John’s conquering hero throughout the Book of Revelation is a Lamb, and he’s a Lamb still now. But first and foremost, he was a Lamb on the cross. This was God’s plan. It was his purpose that his Son should become an atoning sacrifice for our sins, and this plan was made before the foundation of the world. God didn’t make this up as he went along. He didn’t have a good idea one day and come up with it. It wasn’t like that. It’s an astonishing thing about God, is that he has never learned a single thing, and he never will. Meditate on that. Doesn’t that trip your breakers? He’s never learned a single thing and he never will. Never been a new idea for God, never.

And so he is the lamb predestined before the foundation of the world to die on the cross. Revelation 13:8 says, “He was the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.” Jesus Christ was chosen before the foundation of the world to die on the cross for the sins of men and women and boys and girls. This plan was worked out before God said, “Let there be light,” this was a predestined, planned.

The Lamb Predicted

Secondly, he was the Lamb who was predicted. God didn’t just work out the plan, he told us about it ahead of time, so that when it happened, we could see that he had told us ahead of time. This is something only God can do. We don’t know what’s gonna happen next week. We really don’t. It’s really humorous to me that the workers work so hard to get the air conditioner fixed so that we could be nice and cool this morning. Isn’t that wonderful? I just think that’s great. Are you cool enough? Maybe we can open some windows for you. What was it, 35 degrees this morning? We don’t even know the weather, we don’t know what it’s gonna be like in a week. God predicted Christ thousands of years before he was born. He predicted it. And said what would happen. He is the Lamb predicted.

And so we have this idea of the lion of the tribe of Judah. Genesis 49 gives us the prophecy, it says, “Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son you have gone up. He stooped down, he crouched as a lion and as a lioness, who dares to rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet until tribute comes to him, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” This is about 18 centuries before Jesus was born, spoken by Jacob to his son, a prophecy of Jesus.

So he’s the Lion of the tribe of Judah. He’s also predicted to be the root of David, that was in the mouth of Jeremiah the prophet, about six centuries before Jesus was born. Jeremiah 23:5 and 6, “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I’ll raise up to David a righteous branch, a king who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. And in his days, Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord our righteousness.’” That’s Jesus. He is the Lord and he is our righteousness. That’s six centuries before Jesus was born, he is the root of David.

God identified him again and again through history, especially through the animal sacrifice. God set up a system of animal sacrifice whereby animals could represent the taking away of sin, and the priest would take his hands and put them on the head of the substitute of the animal, and he would confess onto the substitute the sins of the people. And then the substitute, the animal would die and its blood would be poured out before God on the altar. It was a picture of Jesus Christ. Every single animal sacrifice there has ever been is a prediction of Christ.

The Lamb Presented

He was the lamb predicted. He was also the lamb presented. At the right time, in the fullness of time, God presented him to the world. Born of a virgin, he presented him. He said at his baptism, “This is my beloved son whom I love. With him, I am well pleased.” He presented him. And for 30 years, he lived in relative obscurity until the time came for him to be presented to Israel as the Savior of the world. And that happened when he was baptized by John the Baptist.

John was a prophet sent by God. And one day he saw Jesus coming toward him. And he pointed toward him, and he said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” That’s a presentation. Everyone behold, behold Jesus. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. His death on the cross is God’s atoning sacrifice. The only one there is for your sin and mine. There’s none other available. Behold the Lamb. God presented him, it says in Romans 3, as a sacrifice of atonement. The one who takes away God’s wrath through faith in his name.

The Lamb Punished

He is also the Lamb punished. He’s the Lamb punished. Four phrases in our text today speak of that. Look at verse six, “Then I saw a Lamb looking as if it had been slain.” Do you see that? Looking as if he had died, “standing in the center of the throne.” Look at verse nine, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were slain. And with your blood, you purchased men for God.” Again, in verse 12, “In a loud voice they sang, ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom, and strength, and honor and glory and praise.’” That’s four mentions just in these 14 verses.

It’s almost as if heaven just can’t get over that Jesus died. That he was slain, that he died on the cross, that his blood was shed. It’s really quite astonishing. This is the one before whom they hide their faces. He sits on the throne. He is powerful, he is the eternal son of God. What a mystery, Almighty God in physical human flesh, and yet he meekly and weakly submits to death, even death on a cross and does nothing. Does not lift a finger to save himself, though he has all power in his smallest finger. More than any of the potentates that have ever lived. He is omnipotent, incarnate. He could have stopped the crucifixion, but he didn’t. It’s really quite amazing.

How could he do it? How could he suspend his power so meekly and die so weakly? How could he do it? Why was he punished? Well, he was punished for us. Punished for us. Whenever I read or see depicted in some way the sufferings of Jesus Christ, I have learned to say, “I deserved that.” I did. Because I broke God’s law. Because I’m a liar, because I’m a sinner, because I’m not godly, because I’ve sinned and fall short of the glory of God, I deserved that. And worse, because the Bible speaks of hell, it speaks of a place of eternal torment, and the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. And there is no rest, day or night for any that do not receive the gospel and believe it.

And I’ve come to train myself to say I deserve that, I deserve hell, and Jesus came as my substitute, to die in my place to take that away from me and from a countless multitude of people, from every tribe and language and people and nation, and all they need to do is believe. And so the prophecy is given in Isaiah 53, “He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” The Lamb punished. I saw a Lamb looking as if it had been slain. That was Jesus.

The Lamb Purchased

Well, he is also a lamb who has purchased with his punishment something of great value. Look at verse nine, “And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.’” This is the amazing purpose of the lamb’s punishment, of his incarnation, of his coming to earth. Jesus had a purpose and it was to buy us back from slavery to sin, so that we would be God’s precious possession. That we would be God’s. Herein find your self-esteem. I am God’s and he is mine forever and ever. Your soul can say that, he has purchased you for God with his own blood. That’s his purchase.

And it’s not a small number friends, and it’s not narrow either, there will be people from all over the world. Herein ends racism and bigotry, and parochialism and focusing on our own little worlds, God is looking at the whole world. And there’s gonna be people from all over the world at the throne worshipping Jesus for his purchase. And by his purchase he has made us, it says, “to be a kingdom of priests.” I think that’s the best way to understand that we are priests who are kings, and we will reign with him forever and ever. How much did that cost? How expensive was that? Jesus paid it all. That’s his purchase.

IV. A Lion on the Throne… But Still a Lamb

The Nature of the Lion

Well, that’s how he’s a lamb. How is he a Lion? It says, “He’s the Lion of the tribe of Judah.” Well, everywhere throughout scripture, lions are portrayed as terrifying foes. It’s an amazing thing that Samson is able to rip a young lion to shreds with his bare hands, only the Spirit of God coming upon him can do it. I don’t care how big his muscles were, he loses, if the Spirit of God doesn’t help him. Because lions are powerful beasts, 700, 800 pounds. Their roar can be heard five miles away. They’re pictures of great power, they shrink back from nothing. They are fearless, terrifying, really. Their roar is terrifying. Their claws, their jaws are terrifying. A terrifying enemy is a lion, you don’t want one as an enemy. Jesus Christ is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Look at verse five, “Then one of the elders said to me, do not weep, behold the lion.” So we have in John chapter 1, in the mouth of John the Baptist, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Here we have, “Behold the Lion.” And how can they both be true of one individual? They’re opposite kind of creatures.

The Triumph of the Lion

But this lion, it says, has triumphed. He has won a great victory. You know what he did? He took that lion-like strength and he ripped to shreds sin and death and the grave, and hallelujah for it. He’s a Lion on our behalf, really. I’ve wondered about this because he’s never called Lion again, ever. In the book of Revelation, he’s never called Lion again. Isn’t that interesting? So the sermon’s a bit misnamed, sorry. He is the Lamb on the throne and the Lion on the throne, both at the same time. He’s still Lamb

And I meditated on this. Why is it always lamb, lamb, lamb for the rest of the book? We never see lion again. Well, he’s already done his lion work for us. When he roared like a Lion, “It is finished!” That’s a victor’s cry. And he has torn apart enemies we could not face ourselves. And he is the victor, he has won the victory.

The Power of the Lion

And we see the power of the lion in symbolic form, difficult to visualize. So just understand it symbolically and prophetically. It says he had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. Seven horns, the horn symbolize strength, kingly power. The number seven, a number of deity, of divinity, of perfection. Perfect power is omnipotence. It says he had seven eyes, the eye is the lamp of the body. With it, we gain information about the world around us. Seven eyes is perfect knowledge, it’s omniscience. It says here is “the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth. Where can I flee from your Spirit? Where can I go from your presence?” This is a picture of perfect presence by his Spirit. It is omnipresence, omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence. He is God. He is God, the Lamb is God.

The Position of the Lion

And look at the position of the Lamb on the throne. Quite simply, he stands in the middle of the throne, again, a picture of Christ’s deity. Look at verse six, “Then I saw a lamb looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders.” Who can share this throne but God himself? Only God can share this throne.

The Lasting Image: Lamb not Lion

Now, why is it for the rest of the book, we never see “Lion” again? Well, you know why? Because I think this book was written for us, it’s written for us to read. It’s to show his servants what must soon take place. It’s for us, for us Christians. For us he’s never a Lion. He doesn’t treat us like a lion would treat. He is gentle with us. He’s tender-hearted. He says, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest, for I am gentle and humble in heart.” Those are lamb-like qualities. That’s the way he deals with his own. He is always a lamb to us.

He’s always terrifyingly a lion to his enemies though. And so you get some anomalies in the book of Revelation, some oddities. Even when Jesus is doing mighty, powerful things against his enemies, he’s still called the Lamb. And so it says very interestingly in Revelation 6, “Then the kings of the earth and the princes and the generals, and the rich and the mighty, and every slave, and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. And they called to the mountains and the rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb.’ For the great day of their wrath has come. And who can stand?”

The wrath of the Lamb is a bit odd. We would understand wrath of the Lion. But for us, he’s a Lamb. It’s the same one. All I’m saying is that Jesus is a delightful Savior, but he’s a terrifying enemy. And oh, that we would not be included among those that are fleeing from him when judgment day comes. That we would be ready to face him unashamed, knowing that his blood was shed for us and toward us, he is gentle and welcoming like a Lamb is.

V. The Lion/Lamb Is Worthy of Universal and Eternal Worship

Worship: “You Are Worthy…”

The passage ends up with universal worship, isn’t it beautiful? The Lion and Lamb is worthy of universal and eternal worship. Verse nine, “And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals.’” He is worthy of worship. He’s the only one in history qualified to take the scroll. He is the only one that died on the cross for our sins. He’s the only one that has been raised from the dead on the third day. He is the death conqueror. He is worthy of our worship.

Universal Worship

And it’s universal worship, notice, first the living creatures, then the 24 elders, then the 100 million angels, then every created thing in heaven and on earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, universal worship.

Worship Based on Christ’s Accomplishment

And it’s also worship based on Christ’s accomplishment. Look at verse nine and 10, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because” – there’s a reason he’s worthy. Because he was slain – “because you were slain and with your blood, you purchased men for God from every tribe and language, and people and nation. And you have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

Eternal Worship

And it is finally eternal worship. Look at verses 13 and 14, “Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them singing, ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the lamb, be praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever.’ The four living creatures said, ‘Amen,’ and the elders fell down and worshipped.”

VI. Application

Come to Christ… Know Him as LAMB so you need not fear Him as LION

Don’t you wanna be there? Don’t you wanna see it with your own eyes? When judgment day comes, don’t you wanna be forgiven for all of your sins by the blood of this lamb that I’ve talked about today. How did you get here today? Did a friend bring you? I say, the best friend brought you, it was Jesus that brought you. Maybe he used someone to invite you, but God brought you here today to hear this message. Because some day you’re going to see this Lion, this Lamb, that he would be for you Lamb and not Lion, that he would be your Savior, that his blood shed on the cross would be full forgiveness for your sins. Do not pretend to say, “I don’t need a savior like this. I’m basically a good person.” There are no basically good people. We’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and we need a savior.

Oh, come to Christ. Come to this gentle savior. He is inviting you. As I’ve already said, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” And you’ll find more than that, you’ll find a door standing open in heaven and a voice will call come up here and I will show you my glory forever and ever, and you will be in the Spirit. And you will see his glory forever and ever. And you will never run out of things to say about Jesus. Come to Christ, worship him today. Trust in him for the forgiveness of your sins, that you might have eternal life. Please close with me in prayer.

These are only preliminary, unedited outlines and may differ from Andy’s final message.

Introduction

Ordinarily on Easter Sunday, I love to imagine what it would have been there that incredible morning.

To be with Mary and the other women when they went to anoint the body of Jesus and found the stone rolled away

To run with Peter and John and investigate the evidence for the resurrection… the linen grave clothes like a cocoon where Jesus body used to be;  the head cloth folded up by itself… the whole scene proclaiming in the loudest voice A RESURRECTION HAS OCCURRED HERE

Even better, the personal encounters… to be there when Jesus encountered Mary and she grasped onto Him as though she would never let Him go again

To be there on the road to Emmaus when the two disciples felt their hearts burning as the resurrected by disguised Christ opened the Scriptures to them and proved that the Christ had to suffer and die and rise again…. Or to sit at the meal table with them later on when their eyes were finally opened and they realized it was Him, and He immediately disappeared from their sight

To be in the upper room when Jesus came through the locked door and gave them many convincing proofs that He was alive

Or beside the Sea of Galilee when He cooked breakfast for them

To imagine what it would have been like to experience the most significant day in human history… the day Jesus rose from the dead

But I would like to bring you this morning not to any place on earth but to a place in heaven;  not back in time but outside of time and perhaps forward in time

Why?

Because there is not a man, woman, or child here today who has a proper estimation of the GREATNESS of Christ, the GREATNESS of what He achieved, the GREATNESS of the life He bought for us, the GREATNESS of the worship He deserves for it or the GREATNESS of the joy we will get in worshiping Him properly

Not one of us thinks TOO HIGHLY of these things… we all have this in common:  we think too little of Christ and His resurrection… INFINITELY SO!!!

So I want to bring you not to a passage from the gospels in which the resurrection is described so vividly and powerfully…

Rather, I want you to follow the most amazing flight any prophet ever took… the flight in the Spirit by John the Apostle, who was in exile on the Island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea

Revelation 4:1-2  After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”  ² At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.

I want to take you in your mind’s eye to the heavenly court… to the throne of God Himself, and to the ultimate effects of Jesus’ mighty victory over death at the cross and the empty tomb

I want you to WORSHIP the RISEN Christ by the same Spirit who led John through the clouds into the heavenly throne room

Context:

Revelation 4… a scene of surpassing greatness, of Almighty God, the Creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible, sitting on His throne…

Surrounding the throne are twenty-four other thrones, and elders sitting on them… there are also four living creatures… and these beings constantly worship God for His creation

Revelation 4:  worship for God the Creator;  Revelation 5:  worship for Christ the Redeemer

This is the setting for the chapter we will look at today… Revelation 5

Four things focus our attention:

1)  The scroll in the hand of God; 2) the proclamation of the angel about the scroll; 3)  the Lamb receiving the scroll; 4)  the honor and glory given by all creation to the Lamb because of it

I. The Scroll:  God’s Plan for Redemption and Judgment for the Earth

A. The Scroll Described

1. Greek:  “biblos”… can be translated “book”, but most likely a scroll rolled up

2. The Scroll was in the right hand of the one who sat on the throne

a. This is none other than God Almighty, God the Father, God the Creator of the ends of the earth

b. He sits on a throne proclaiming His absolute sovereignty over the events of heaven and earth

c. This Scroll must be a precious thing indeed, for it rests in the right hand of the eternal ruler of the universe

3. Written on both sides

a. It was revealed to John that the scroll had writing on BOTH SIDES

b. This implies a complete and total account… a full document

c. No room to add to it… and since it is almost certainly the writing of God, no room to take away from it

4. Sealed with Seven Seals

a. A seal implies ownership and authority

b. It forbids ANYONE who has not the right to break the seals

c. SEVEN seals:  a complete sealing of the scroll… what is inside is a complete mystery

i) The number seven a number of completeness

ii) This scroll is COMPLETELY sealed… no one can pry up a corner of the scroll and see some of it

iii) Based on what happens in Revelation 6-8 when the seven seals are opened, the scroll is probably PROGRESSIVELY sealed… the scroll is rolled up some, and a seal is put on;  then rolled up a little more, then sealed again;  then rolled up a little more, then sealed again… until it has seven seals on it

B. The Scroll Interpreted

1. What is this scroll?  What is its significance?

2. God’s Eternal Plan for the Redemption and Judgment of the Earth

a. This is the sovereign plan of God, written out in His hand before the creation of the world

b. This is His predestined plan, the writing on both sides set, the ink is dry, the plan determined, BUT MYSTERIOUS to us

c. As the seals are broken, the plan unfolds and becomes clearer and clearer

d. Until the seals are broken, what’s written in the scroll is mysterious

e. Thus it is with God’s sovereign plan, written in His scroll from the foundation of the world

Deuteronomy 29:29  The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever

II. The Angel’s Proclamation:  Who is Worthy?

Vs. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?”

A. The Nature of the Proclamation

1. This task was assigned to a “mighty angel”…noteworthy for immense power

2. The proclamation is made with a loud voice… so it can be heard across all creation… it is meant for everyone to hear

3. The proclamation is a question… perhaps even a challenge

Who is worthy?

In one version of the legend of King Arthur, there is a powerful sword, Excalibur, magically stuck in an anvil, and embedded in a boulder.  On it is inscribed this caption:

“Who so Pulleth Out This Sword of this Stone and Anvil, is Rightwise Born King of All England.”

It was a way of qualifying who had the right to rule… it could only be done by the true and future King of England.  Many try to pull the sword out, but no one can.  But one day, a young squire, helping his knight, Sir Kay, prepare for a jousting tournament, realized he had forgotten Sir Kay’s sword… so he ran out looking for another sword Sir Kay could use;  he found one sticking in a stone and, with no one watching, easily pulled it out;  he ran and gave it to Sir Kay who recognized it immediately.  He brought the young squire to the stone and had him put it back.  When he did, Sir Kay could not pull it out.  Neither could anyone else… but the young squire could.  His name was Arthur.

But that is fantasy, myth, legend…

This is spiritual reality:  whoever can take the scroll from the right hand of Him who sits on the throne achieves something far greater than we can possibly imagine… rightful King, not only of England and not only for a few decades.  No…the RIGHTFUL KING OF THE UNIVERSE, and for ALL ETERNITY!!!

B. The Purposes of the Proclamation

1. To display the greatness of the task of opening the scroll

a. The taking of the scroll from the right hand of Him who sits on the throne implies the right to rule heaven and earth

b. The opening of the scroll seal by seal implies the right to govern the development of God’s eternal plan of redemption and judgment for the whole earth

c. The rights and privileges of taking the scroll and opening it are greatly dramatized by the pomp and circumstance of the setting and the mighty angel’s loud proclamation

2. To display the disqualification of all creation from the task

a. The silence and stillness of all creation testifies to another fact… NO ONE IS WORTHY to do this great task

Revelation 5:3  But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it.

b. This includes every single human being that has ever lived

i) All the mightiest emperors:  Alexander the Great, Caesar Augustus, Genghis Khan, Napoleon… all of them disqualified

ii) All the wisest philosophers:  Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Descartes… all of them disqualified

iii) All the greatest scientists and inventors:  Archimedes, Pythagoras, DaVinci, Newton, Edison, Einstein… every last one of them are disqualified

iv) Even the humble unknowns, the hidden people of history, all of the common people, the humble and lowly, the meek and gentle… yet all of them disqualified

v) Even among the godliest believers in the Bible or church history:  even Abel, Enoch, Job, Abraham, Moses, David, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, John the Baptist, the Apostles Peter and Paul, the holy martyrs whose blood was shed for God’s Kingdom, the missionaries who left their homes and traveled to distant shores, whose loved ones died from tropical fevers, whose own bodies broken out of love for the lost… yet all of them disqualified

vi) John himself, the godly apostle through whom this mighty Revelation came, he knows he does not deserve the honor… he is disqualified

vii) Let me get really personal:  YOU and I are disqualified… we cannot stir, we cannot make a move, not one of us would dare to walk forward boldly

Why are we all disqualified?  Why have we no right to take upon us the honor of advancing to the throne of God, and boldly taking from His right hand the seven-sealed scroll?

Romans 3:23  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

c. Let me go further:  even the Holy Angels, perfect beings who never sinned, yet from this honor they too are disqualified

d. There is not a man, woman, child, angel, demon, living creature or being of any kind who steps forward at that moment to take this scroll

e. Herein the entire human race finds its humility… we are simply  NOT WORTHY to take the scroll and open it or look inside it

3. To heighten a sense of grief and anticipation

Revelation 5:4  I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside.

4. To display ultimately the greatness of Christ

a. The angel’s proclamation and the resulting unworthiness of the entire universe only heightens one thing… the infinite worthiness of Jesus Christ

Revelation 5:5  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.”

A Lion who has triumphed you might imagine would have some great appearance, some terrifying display of dreadful, overwhelming power

But in John’s vision, the Lion is a Lamb, and frankly that is what He is called again and again through the rest of the Book of Revelation

John’s conquering hero is a Lamb… and He is a Lamb still

But first and foremost He was a Lamb on the cross

III. A Lamb on the Cross

A. The Lamb Predestined

Revelation 13:8  the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.

1. Jesus Christ was chosen by God the Father before the creation of the world

2. The salvation plan was worked out before God said “Let there be light”

3. Thus the heavenly triumph at the completion of God’s predestined plan

B. The Lamb Predicted

1. Having worked out the salvation plan before the world began, God wisely predicted the sacrifice of Christ for thousands of years before Christ was even born… through MANY PROPHECIES of ancient scripture

2. The Lion of the Tribe of Judah

a. Clear prophecy made centuries before Christ that the Messiah would descend from the Tribe of Judah, the son of Jacob, the Grandson of Abraham

Genesis 49:9-10  Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?  ¹⁰ The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

b. Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah

3. The Root of David

Jeremiah 23:5-6  “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.  ⁶ In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.

4. God identified Him throughout history

a. Historically predictive prophecies:  acted out in time

i) Most important:  sacrificial system

ii) Over and over, sinners in Israel brought animals to the priests, who would lay their hands on the sacrifices and transfer their guilt

iii) The animal would then be sacrificed in the place of the sinner

b. Verbally predictive prophecies

Isaiah 53:4-6  Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.  ⁵ But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.  ⁶ We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

C. The Lamb Presented

1. Christ was born of the Virgin Mary

2. Grew up and lived away from public life until He was ready to be presented to Israel and to the world as the Messiah

3. This happened first at the Jordan River, where a prophet named John was baptizing huge crowds of people

4. John’s statement presented Jesus to the world as the LAMB

John 1:29-31  The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! …

5. God then presented Christ to His enemies and to Himself for death

Romans 3:23-25  God presented [Jesus] as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.

God presented Christ to the world as the LAMB of GOD who was to take away the sins of the world

D. The Lamb Punished

1. Three phrases speak of the punishment of the Lamb

Vs. 6  Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne

Vs. 9  “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God

Vs. 12  In a loud voice they sang: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”

It’s as though heaven can’t ever stop thinking about the death, the bloody death of this Lamb

2. Here is the clear doctrine:  the essence of Christ’s Lamb-like behavior was that He allowed Himself to be slain

a. What a mystery!!  Almighty God in the flesh, with more power in His hand than all the mightiest Emperors from all human history combined and multiplied by a million

b. YET He meekly submits to arrest, unjust trial, mocking, spitting, beatings, flogging, humiliation down the streets of Jerusalem, then hideously painful death by the cross in full view of the citizens of Israel

c. HOW COULD HE suspend His power so meekly??

d. HOW COULD HE behave so weakly?

e. HOW COULD HE just allow Him to mock Him while He suffered for others on the cross?

3. Why was He punished?

Isaiah 53:5-7  He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.  ⁶ We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 

The Lamb on the cross was actually a LION on our behalf; Destroying sin, crushing death, tearing apart Satan’s dark kingdom as a lion would rip apart his prey

Jesus was as savage as any lion has ever been… but He did it as meekly as a lamb

This was the Lamb’s punishment… not for anything He’d done, but for things we’d done;  for the sins of the world, for the wretchedness of all God’s children who would believe in Him

E. The Lamb’s Purchase

Revelation 5:9  And they sang a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

1. This is the amazing purpose of the Lamb’s self-sacrifice… to make an infinitely costly purchase

2. With his blood He purchased SINNERS… people like you and me;  bought out of slavery by the payment of a blood price

3. They were purchased by the price of His blood

4. They were purchased FOR GOD… to be GOD’S OWN POSSESSION

5. They were purchased from all over the world

IV. A Lion on the Throne… But Still a Lamb

A. The Nature of the Lion

1. Everywhere throughout the Scripture, lions are portrayed as terrifying foes

2. They are utterly fearless, they are totally ferocious, they dominate everything that surrounds them

3. They advance, and never retreat;  they tear their victims limb from limb

4. Their roar can be heard five miles away… they stalk their prey and cannot be deterred;  when they are ready, they pounce on their helpless victims

5. Jesus Christ is called “The Lion of the Tribe of Judah”

B. The Triumph of the Lion

Revelation 5:5  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.”

1. The triumph is declared… “He has triumphed!!!”

a. The word means “to conquer”… usually in military victory

b. A fierce adversary has been defeated, utterly vanquished, and the plunder is His to take

2. The triumph of Jesus is clear:  He has EARNED the right to take the scroll with its seven seals

3. The triumph is nothing less than His victory at the cross…

a. Victory over Satan and His demonic forces

b. Victory over death and the grave

Jesus was like a lion against these deadly foes… tearing Satan’s kingdom apart;  ripping the grave limb from limb;  roaring in victory as He died

“It is finished!!!”

That is the cry of the victor!!!  The lion’s great triumph!!!

The spoils of the victory are evident here:

Revelation 5:7  He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne.

C. The Power of the Lion

Revelation 5:6  He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

1. Seven horns:

a. horns represent kingly power, the power to conquer and to rule

b. “Seven” is the number of perfection, of divine completeness

c. So this is a symbol of PERFECT POWER = OMNIPOTENCE

2. Seven eyes

a. Eye is the lamp of the body… with it we gain our knowledge

b. Seven eyes:  PERFECT SIGHT = PERFECT KNOWLEDGE=   OMNISCIENCE

3. Seven spirits sent out into all the earth

a. By the Holy Spirit of God Christ extends His presence and His power everywhere, all over the entire globe

b. This is the picture of PERFECT PRESENCE = OMNIPRESENCE

D. The Position of the Lion

1. Quite simply:  Christ stands in the middle of the throne… again, a picture of Christ’s deity

Revelation 5:6  Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders.

2. Who can share the throne but God Himself?

3. But Christ shares the highest place with His heavenly Father

4. This image is strengthened later

Vs. 13  “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”

Revelation 7:17  For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.

E. The Lasting Image:  Lamb not Lion

1. This sermon is perhaps mistitled:  Lamb on the Cross, Lion on the Throne

2. Fact is, Jesus is never again called a LION in the entire Book of Revelation!!

3. To His foes, Jesus is a terrifying LION, and He will destroy Satan’s wicked kingdom until there is absolutely nothing left

4. BUT the Book of Revelation is written not to Jesus’ enemies but to His children, His servants, those who love Him

5. Therefore to them He is repeatedly pictured as a LAMB:  29 more times

a. Again and again identified immediately with God on the throne

Revelation 7:9-10  After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.  ¹⁰ And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

Revelation 22:1-3  Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb  ² down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.  ³ No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.

b. Even when doing terrifying things to His enemies

Revelation 6:15-17  hen the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains.  ¹⁶ They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!  ¹⁷ For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

Amazing!!  The “wrath of the Lamb”… clearly terrifying to the enemies of God, but to US, the redeemed, Jesus is Lamb-like

Even in the Second Coming, Jesus is a terrifying enemy, but to His own people, a gentle Lamb

Revelation 17:14  [The enemies of God] will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings– and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

6. For His beloved people, Jesus is ALWAYS gentle like a lamb… tenderhearted and compassionate

V. The Lion/Lamb Is Worthy of Universal and Eternal Worship

The taking of the scroll results in overwhelming worship for the Lion… the Lamb

A. Worship:  “You Are Worthy…”

vs. 9  And they sang a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals

1. The central issue of worship is the WORTHINESS of the one we’re worshiping

2. Jesus is absolutely WORTHY of our worship

3. He is the only one in history who was qualified to take the scroll from the right hand of God Almighty

4. When He took it, the worship poured forth

B. Universal Worship

1. First, the four living creatures

2. Then the twenty-four elders… each of them holding harps for music and bowls full of incense wafting toward the Lamb

3. Then a hundred million angels surrounded the throne and took up the praise

4. Then EVERY CREATED THING in heaven and earth and under the earth, and in the sea took up the theme and joined in

5. This is universal worship, well-earned by Jesus Christ

C. Worship Based on Christ’s Accomplishment

Vs. 9-10  And they sang a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.  ¹⁰ You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

1. Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection victory is the greatest achievement in history

2. He was slain… and His blood is the most valuable precious commodity in the universe

3. Its power to cleanse is infinite… and by it a countless multitude from every tribe and nation was purchased to be God’s own special possession

4. The power of Christ’s ministry is infinite also because it changes forever our future

a. We were deserving of eternal torment in hell for our sins

b. Instead, he has made us to be a kingdom of priests for God

c. And we will reign on the New Earth… a beautiful realm of perfect nature, the eternal home of righteousness… we will rule like Kings and Queens under His perfect rule forever

D. Eternal Worship

Revelation 5:13-14  Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”  ¹⁴ The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

It is our privilege to worship for all eternity… for Jesus, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Lamb of God whose blood atoned for our sins, is eternally worthy of our praise

VI. Application

A. Come to Christ… Know Him as LAMB so you need not fear Him as LION

1. Full atonement for all sin is available in the death of Jesus Christ

2. He is the Lamb of God, whose sin takes away the sin of the world

3. His blood is infinitely precious

4. His manner with repentant sinners is infinitely gentle

B. Anticipate His Full Glory Being Revealed to You

1. If you trust in Christ, you will someday be able to see what John experienced

2. You will see the full glory of Christ

a. His immeasurable power and courage and authority as a LION

b. His infinite tenderness and gentleness as a LAMB

3. You will have a sense of how much sin there was in your life and how much you needed the blood of Christ to be shed for you

4. You will fall down in His presence, and you will be overcome with emotion… with tears of joy and wonder streaming like rivers of life down your cheeks

5. You will feel a burning ardor of love for Christ and admiration for Him inside you that will only grow ad grow over time

6. And you will WORSHIP Him forever

C. Thank Him NOW for His Sacrificial Death and His Powerful Resurrection

1. For you He is a gentle Lamb

2. For your great enemy death, His is a terrifying Lion

3. Give Him thanks and praise!!