Jesus is Worthy
Glimpses of Heaven
Scripture Reading - Revelation 5:1-14
and I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?" Revelation 5: 2
Through the years there have been many books, articles, and essays concerning John's visions as recorded in Revelation. One day, while watching the television, I happened to find a documentary on the Bible and its prophecies. I watched in total fear as the events of the last days unfolded, and I began to wonder why everything being said centered around mass chaos and destruction. I soon realized that we may have lost perspective.
To get back on track, let us revisit the purpose of John's book. Revelation is not a book of fear. Instead, Revelation is a book of hope. Its purpose is to encourage the church during difficult times. If John intended the book to be a book about tribulation and suffering, it would have started with a curse. Revelation does not begin with woe; the book begins with Christ. It is the revelation of Jesus Christ, and John writes in the first chapter, "Blessed in the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it." This comment seems to be a far cry from the death and destruction that is often depicted on television.
Have we become so accustomed to sensationalism that we are leaving out the most important message that has ever been given to the Church? Perhaps we like our Scripture that way we like all of our other entertainment: replete with action and people receiving "what they have coming to them." We live in a society that still expects "a tooth for a tooth and an eye for an eye." We want evil in this world to be avenged. Perhaps our violent expectations of "the end" reflect our desire for vengeance instead of mercy.
However, we quickly forget that we all deserve to die. We all deserve the same fate the unbelievers receive in certain interpretations of Revelation. We are all guilty; but, Christ paid the price for us on the cross. In the end, we will praise Him for taking our place. This act of praise is what John witnesses in chapter 5.
Revelation is a glimpse into heaven. It is a vision of what it will be like to praise Jesus forever. In chapter 5 we read that Jesus is the only one worthy enough to break the seals and open the scroll. Jesus is the only one worthy enough to defeat evil. Jesus is the only one worthy enough to be in control.
When we put all of our focus on the death, destruction, and chaos that befalls the earth in Revelation, we take the focus away from Christ. We are taking the focus away from the work that Christ did while he walked the earth. In all of our eagerness to predict the end of the world, we forget that God is in control.
Worthy is the Lamb!
