First Presbyterian Church
What's a Presbyterian to do with Revelation Part 4
Sermon for August 17, 2003
by Pastor Susan Barnes

This is the fourth sermon in a series on Revelation. As we've been learning, much of Revelation is based on the old testament, especially the book of Daniel. As I read from Revelation 4, Mike will read some related old testament verses.

I hope that hearing these old testament references helps you see how grounded Revelation is in the Hebrew Bible. I hope we can make sense of the odd images we hear. John paints pictures with words; they weren't meant to be drawn, but heard. I will be reading from David Aune's translation of chapter 4.

Like old testament prophets, John has been called to hear the divine word and tell God's hidden purpose to his people then explain their part in carrying it out. Listen for the word of God as it is found in Revelation 4.

1. After this I saw, and behold, a door was opened in heaven, and the first voice which I heard like a trumpet spoke to me. “Come up here, and I will reveal to you what must happen after this.”

… but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has disclosed to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen at the end of days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed were these:To you, O king, as you lay in bed, came thoughts of what would be hereafter, and the revealer of mysteries disclosed to you what is to be. Daniel 2:28-29.

2. Immediately I was in a prophetic trance, and behold a throne was situated in heaven, and someone was seated upon the throne .

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty... Isaiah 6:1a.

3. The one seated there was like jasper and carnelian in appearance

And above the dome over their heads there was something like a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was something that seemed like a human form. Ezekiel 1: 26.

and a rainbow encircled the throne like emerald in appearance .

Like the bow in a cloud on a rainy day, such was the appearance of the splendor all around. Ezekiel 1: 28.

When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. Genesis 9:14-15.

4. Twenty-four thrones encircled that throne, and on the thrones sat twenty-four elders dressed in white robes with gold crowns on their heads. 5. From the throne came lightning and rumbling and thunder, and seven blazing torches (which are the seven spirits of God) were burning before the throne .

…his throne was fiery flames, and its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and flowed out from his presence. Daniel 7:9c, 10.

6. There was also before the throne something like a glassy sea like crystal. In the midst of the throne and around the throne were four cherubim covered with eyes on the front and on the back .

Over the heads of the living creatures there was something like a dome, shining like crystal, spread out above their heads. Ezekiel 1: 22.

7. And the first cherub was like a lion, and the second cherub was like an ox, and the third cherub had a face like a human, and the fourth cherub was like a flying eagle.

Each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. As for the appearance of their faces: the four had the face of a human being, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle. Ezekiel 1:6a, 10.

8. And the four cherubim, each of whom had six wings, were covered with eyes on the outside and on the inside, and day and night they did not cease changing, “holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and who is and is the One who comes .

Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory." Isaiah 6: 2,3.

9. And when the cherubim give glory and honor and thanksgiving to the One seated upon the throne who lives forever and ever, 10. The twenty-four elders prostrate themselves before the One sitting on the throne

I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored the one who lives forever. For his sovereignty is an everlasting sovereignty, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation. Dan 4:34.

and they worship the On e who lives forever and ever and they cast their garlands before the throne, chanting, 11. “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power because you created all things and by your will they exist, yes, were created.”

Riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might; and it is in your hand to make great and to give strength to all. 1 Chronicles 29:12.

This ends our reading of God's word.

In the Bible, the sea is generally a place of chaos and evil; only God has the power to control the sea, as in creation; controlling water is sign of God's favor, as when Moses parted the Reed Sea, or Christ stilled the waves and walked on the water. The glassy, crystal sea is a sign that chaos again is calmed by God.

John's cherubim are a little different from Isaiah's seraphim. They are covered with eyes inside and out; they are God's eyes, seeing the persecution of God's people and the evil and good being done. The throne is in the center of it all; those eyes means God is aware of their plight. (1) The saints can persevere because God is the center of it all, passing judgment. We tend to hear judgment as a bad thing, but for those early Christians, judgment meant justice. Only those who deserve it will be punished.

The twenty-four elders on twenty-four thrones are identified with the twelve tribes and the twelve apostles. They represent the entire community of the redeemed of the old and new testament. The four living creatures represent all animal life throughout creation. Everyone is going to praise God.

Early Christians needed encouragement and hope. Letters from the late first and early second century give us a glimpse of what life was like then.

In the early second century. Pliny was appointed by the emperor Trajan to govern Bithynia , which had not been governed at all well. Two million-dollar aqueducts in one city were never finished, and a theater, even though the walls were 22 feet thick, could not support any weight on them.

Pliny wrote the emperor for advice on managing these problems. He also sent him this letter about the Christian problem.

“Pliny, governor of Bithynia , to Trajan the Emperor

I have made it a rule, Lord, to refer everything to you about which I am in doubt. For who could better provide direction for my hesitation or instruction for my lack of knowledge?

I have never been present at the interrogation of Christians. Therefore, I do not know how far such investigations should be pushed, and what sort of punishments are appropriate. I have also been uncertain as to whether age makes any difference, or whether the very young are dealt with in the same way as adults, whether repentance and renunciation of Christianity is sufficient, or whether the accused are still considered criminal because they were once Christians even if they later renounced it, and whether persons are to be punished simply for the name ‘Christian' even if no criminal act has been committed, or whether only crimes associated with the name are to be punished.

In the meantime I have handled those who have been denounced to me as Christians as follows: I asked them whether they were Christians. Those who responded affirmatively I have asked a second and third time, under threat of the death penalty. If they persisted in their confession, I had them executed. For whether it is that they are actually advocating, it seems to me that obstinacy and stubbornness must be punished in any case. Others who labor under the same delusion, but who were Roman citizens, I have designated to be sent to Rome.

In the course of the investigations, as it usually happens, charges are brought against wider circles of people, and the following special cases have emerged:

An unsigned placard was posted, accusing a large number of people by name. Those who denied being Christians now or in the past, I thought necessary to release, since they invoked our gods according to the formula I gave them and since they offered sacrifices of win and incense before your image which I had brought in for the purpose along with the statues of our gods. I also had them curse Christ. It is said that real Christians cannot be forced to do any of these things. …

` [those who had renounced their being Christians] verified that their entire guilt or error consisted in the fact that on a specified day before sunrise they were accustomed to gather and sing an antiphonal hymn to Christ as their god and to pledge themselves by an oath not to engage in any crime, but to abstain from all thievery, assault, and adultery, not to break their word once they had given it, and not to refuse to pay their legal debts. They then went their separate ways, and came together later to eat a common meal, but it was ordinary, harmless food. They discontinued even this practice in accordance with my edict by which I had forbidden political associations, in accord with your instruction. I considered it all the more necessary to obtain by torture a confession of the truth from two female slaves, whom they called ‘deaconesses.' I found nothing more than a vulgar, excessive superstition.

I thus adjourned further hearings, in order to seek counsel from you. The matter seems to me in need of good counsel, especially in view of the large number of accused. For many of every age and class, of both sexes, are in danger of prosecution both now and in the future. The plague of this superstition has spread not only in the cities, but through villages and the countryside. But I believe a stop can be made and a remedy provided. In any case, it is now quite clear that the temples, almost deserted previously, are gradually gaining more and more visitors, the long neglected sacred festivals are again regularly observed, and the sacrificial meat, for which buyers have been hard to find, is again being purchased. From this one can easily see what an improvement can be made in the masses, when one gives room for repentance.”

The emperor responded: “ My Secondus! You have chosen the right way with regard to the cases of those how have been accused before you as Christians. Nothing exists that can be considered a universal norm for such cases. Christians should not be sought out. But if they are accused and handed over, they are to be punished, but only if they do not deny being Christian and demonstrate it by the appropriate act i.e. the worship of our gods. Even if one is suspect because of past conduct, he or she is to be acquitted in view of repentances. Anonymous accusations may not be considered in any trial, for that would be a dangerous precedent, and does not fit our times. ” (2)

And so with this as a background, maybe we can hear words of hope in the fourth chapter. It is God who is sovereign, Christ who died and was resurrected, and the Spirit-inspired prophets who tell the people of God to persevere. John used words from Daniel, especially, words that had sustained God's people in exile and trouble. John updated the images for his time, alluding to Daniel, but putting on his own prophetic stamp, so that this new generation of God's people would know God was still the god of salvation.

And now we read these texts, looking for gospel and grace. This vision of the heavenly throne, the gold and white elders, the precious gems and the winged cherubim remind us that God is sovereign, that I do have heavenly help.

I do need encouraging. Just this week, I read about the problems at the church of the Nativity in Bethlehem . The church marks the traditional birthplace of Jesus. Three churches have jurisdiction over the building: the Greek Orthodox have the choir loft, sanctuary and altar; the Armenian Orthodox have the north transept and altar, and the Franciscans, the Roman Catholics, have the Grotto of the Manger. The Greek Orthodox Church opens the gates, although the others have the keys. But last year, when Palestinians died inside the church, the Roman Catholics and the Armenians opened the gates to take the corpses out without consulting the Greek Orthodox, and the Greek Orthodox were also angered that Muslim prayers were said over the bodies. Now the Greek Orthodox changed the locks, and are asserting sole control over the "locks and keys" to the Church of the Nativity. (3) When I hear Christians fighting, or bearing theological grudges against each other, I get tired. So I need the energy that comes from Revelation. I can persevere in the face of apathy, selfishness, rudeness, and meanness in the name of Christ.

Getting baptized, or becoming a church member, or attending worship here, are signs that we belong to Christ. It is our witness to the community. Certainly Christ calls us to behaviors that go beyond walking into this building at 10:30 on a Sunday morning. But coming together is a part of our call; part of living out the life Christ calls us to. And today we celebrate as a community in the calls to mission two of our members have experienced.

(1) Aune, David E. Word Biblical Commentary: Revelation 1-5. p. 331.

(2) Pliny the Younger, Letters 10:97, quoted in Boring's Hellenistic Commentary to the New Testament, p.557-9.

(3) Dunn, Ross. “Row seethes in Bethlehem over keys to the birthplace of Jesus,” Ecumenical News International, August 15, 2003 . PCUSA News.