He Is Worthy

Scripture Reading: Revelation 5:1-14.

Introduction
Here in Revelation chapter 5 we see a pattern that is frequently repeated in our spiritual progress. It is the pattern of hope being raised then dashed and then being restored again. I tell you the truth, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. John12:24 !esus taught about this principle in very un"ista#eable ter"s in !ohn 1$:%&-%%:
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I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. ou will grie!e, "ut your grief will turn to joy. # woman gi!ing "irth to a child has pain "ecause her time has come$ "ut when her "a"y is "orn she forgets the anguish "ecause of her joy that a child is "orn into the world. %o with you: &ow is your time of grief, "ut I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no'one will ta(e away your joy. John 1):20'22
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Hope Raised
*+hen I saw in the right hand of him who sat upon the throne a scroll with writing on "oth sides and sealed with se!en seals., -erse 1. 'he scroll is significant for three reasons na"ely: 1( )ecause of the person that held it* %( )ecause it was sealed with seven seals* +( )ecause it was written on both sides. The Person That Held the Scroll 'he person that held the scroll was ,hi" who sat upon the throne-. 'his is .od the /ather. 0e can be absolutely sure about this as in the previous chapter the four living creatures around the throne never stop saying: *.oly, holy, holy

is the /ord 0od #lmighty, who was, and is, and is to come., 'he throne of .od is a co""on 1ld 'esta"ent picture. 2icaiah the prophet saw ,the 3ord sitting on his throne with all the hosts of heaven round hi"- 41 5ings %%:16( the 7sal"ist says ,.od is seated on his holy throne- 47s. 48:9( and Isaiah ,saw the 3ord seated on a throne high and e:alted- 4Is. $:1(. In the boo# of Revelation the throne of .od is "entioned in every chapter e:cept three 4% 9 ; 6(.0e can be absolutely certain that the person sat upon the throne was .od the /ather. 'he scroll was in the hand of the /ather and hence it belonged to the /ather. It was the /ather<s scroll. =ny docu"ent owned by the /ather .od =l"ighty is a significant docu"ent. 0e hear of letters of fa"ous people and stars being sold at auction for hundreds so"eti"es thousands of pounds. How "uch would a docu"ent written by .od =l"ighty be worth> 'his was a significant and i"portant docu"ent si"ply because of the person holding it. The Scroll Was Sealed With Seven Seals 'he scroll was sealed with seven seals. 0hen a scroll contained official secret or confidential infor"ation it was fastened with threads and sealed with wa: at the #nots in the threads. 'he seal would bear the i"pression or official "ar# of the owner writer or originator of the docu"ent. 'he fact that this scroll was sealed with seven seals indicates the profound secrecy contained within the scroll. )ut what was actually written inside the scroll and why was it such a profound secret. 0ell the #ey to the answer is actually in ?hapter 4. In verse 1 of that chapter a voice had spo#en to !ohn and said: *1ome up here, and I will show you what must ta(e place after this., =nd so we can see that the scroll contained so"ething pertaining to the future. 'his scroll contained .od<s plan for the future. .od has planned the future and his plan is #ept secret fro" everyone. The Scroll Had Writing on Both Sides /irstly this was a scroll and not a boo#. = scroll was "ade fro" "ade fro" papyrus sheets which were @oined together horiAontally to for" a long strip which was rolled up for convenience. 7apyrus was produced fro" the pith of bulrush which grew in the Bile delta. 'his bulrush grew to a total height of about fifteen feet of which appro:i"ately si: feet was below water. 'he pith of the bulrush was e:tracted and cut into thin strips. 'hese strips were then laid in horiAontal and vertical rows on top of one another and glued together. =s a result on one side the grain ran horiAontally - this was the front of the papyrus and was easy to write upon whilst on the reverse side the grain ran vertically and writing was difficult on this side. 7eople tried to avoid writing on the reverse side however as papyrus was such an e:pensive "aterial whenever they had a lot of writing to do they would write on both sides. 'he scroll then is a significant docu"ent and it is significant because it is .od<s own plan for the future. 'his plan is e:tre"ely detailed. Indeed it "ust be

e:tre"ely detailed because it contains .od<s plan for your life and for "y life. .od<s plan is a profound secret. Bo-body #nows the future e:cept .od hi"self. *I don2t (now what the future holds for me, "ut I do (now who holds my future., 'hat saying is very si"ple but it is also a fantastic truth. 0ho holds the future !esus holds the future he has ta#en the scroll he has ta#en the /ather<s plan fro" the /ather<s hand. !esus holds the future.

Hope Destroyed
*#nd I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud !oice *3ho is worthy to "rea( the seals and open the scroll4,. But no'one in hea!en or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or loo( inside., !erses 2 5 6 In verse 1 we are told that the scroll was in .od<s hand. However the .ree# word is which literally "eans ,on-. In other words the scroll was on .od<s open hand. .od was therefore inviting so"eone to co"e and ta#e the scroll. Cou can i"agine the scene. 'he throne of .od is surrounded by a circle for"ed by the four living creatures around the" is a second circle "ade up of the twenty-four elders and around the" a third circle "ade up of the angels who nu"ber thousands upon thousands and ten thousand ti"es ten thousand. Duddenly a "ighty angel shouts out: ,0ho is worthy to brea# the seals and open the scroll> 2oses surely you are worthy>,Bo no I a" not worthy.,=braha" as father of .od<s chosen people you "ust be worthy>,Bo I couldn<t do it.,Enoch you were a Righteous "an you co"e forward.,Bo I a" too i"pure. ,Eli@ah Isaiah !ere"iah Faniel surely one of the prophets one of you "ust be worthy>,Bo none of us could do it,0ell 7eter or 7aul surely one of you two,Bo we too are unworthy,0hat about ?alvin 3uther =ugustine Cuongi ?ho )illy .raha" or 2orris ?erello surely one of you can co"e-

,Bo no we couldn<t even thin# about it,How about the =rch-angel 2ichael surely you "ust be worthy>,Bo no I couldn<t.=nd so the whole of heaven and earth was e:hausted of people and not one however great however holy however honoured by .od no-one was worthy to open the scroll. 'his upset the =postle !ohn and he wept. 0hy was !ohn upset> In chapter 4:1 !ohn had been told ,?o"e up here and I will show what "ust ta#e place after this-. /urther"ore it see"ed that .od had no-one in the universe to who" he could reveal his "ysteries. 'he prophet ="os had said ,Durely the Dovereign 3ord does nothing without revealing his plans to his servants the prophets- 4="os +:8(. 'he situation was therefore terrible as .od it see"ed had reached a stale"ate in his plans.

Hope Restored
*+hen one of the elders said to me, *7o not weep8 %ee the /ion of the tri"e of Judah, the root of 7a!id, has triumphed. .e is a"le to open the scroll and it2s se!en seals., +hen I saw a /am", loo(ing as if it had "een slain, standing in the centre of the throne, encircled "y the four li!ing creatures and the elders. .e had se!en horns and se!en eyes, which are the se!en spirits of 0od sent out into all the earth., !erses 9 5 ). !ust as !ohn thought that all hope was lost hope was restored. 'he elder spea#s of the 3ion of !udah that has triu"phed that is worthy and that is able. 'he 3ion of !udah is none other than !esus ?hrist. He has triu"phed he is worthy he is able. In this section !esus is called by two titles 4 The Lion of the Tribe of Judah and The Root of David(. 'hese two titles were !ewish titles which were closely connected with the 2essiah the for"er being associated with strength of the lion and it<s position of #ing of the beasts and the latter with the royal line of Israel. )oth titles portray the idea of "a@esty and of royalty. 'he ,3ion of !udah- is a title that has it<s origins in !acob<s final blessing of his sons. In that blessing !acob calls !udah ,a lions cub- 4.e. 46:6( and hence it is fitting to call the greatest "e"ber of the tribe of !udah ,'he 3ion 1f !udah-. 'he ,Root of Favid- is a title that dates fro" Isaiah<s prophecy that there will co"e forth a shoot fro" the stu"p of !esse and a root of !esse who shall be an ensign a banner to the people 4Is.11:1 ; 1&(. !esse was the /ather of Favid and !esus was descended fro" Favid<s line and was the pro"ised 2essiah. !ohn loo#ed for this lion for this great "ighty powerful creature that had triu"phed. )ut all that he could see was a 3a"b even a la"b as if it had been slain. How could this little la"b be the one who could open the scroll. 'he elder had said that a lion was worthy so who was this little la"b> 'he 3a"b of course was !esus ?hrist. He triu"phed over Datan over sin and over death when he gave his

life for us on ?alvary<s tree. Botice: 1( 'he 3a"b still bore the "ar#s of having been slain. 'his is indicative of ?hrist<s sacrifice. Even in the heavenly places ?hrist is the one who loved us hu"ans and gave hi"self for us. 0e are told in Isaiah 5+:8 that ,he was led li#e a la"b to the slaughter-. Helen and I went to Israel on holiday. 1ne day as we were wal#ing bac# through !erusale" we approached the Gia Folorosa 4the 0ay of the ?ross( which is the street through which !esus carried the cross on his way to ?alvary. !ust at that point we saw a sheep @ust one sheep being led through the streets by its "aster. 'he sheep @ust followed it was not guided it was not led on a string or a lead it si"ply followed. I re"ar#ed to Helen ,loo# at that poor thing isn<t it sweet. 0hat it doesn<t #now is that it<s being led ho"e for so"eone<s dinner.- =s soon as I had said that it hit "e. ,3ed li#e a la"b to the slaughter-. .od had given "e a new insight into the Daviour<s death. !esus was led away to ?alvary in perfect "ee#ness. Bo argu"ents no ,who do you thin# you are>- he didn<t fight or resist his e:ecuters he @ust went. Cou #now he really tried to carry that cross. He didn<t drop it out of spite. !esus was si"ply e:hausted. He had been #ept up all night. He had been dragged across !erusale" several ti"es as the rulers tried to pass the buc# to one another over who would actually be responsible for his death. !esus had been severely whipped. 'he streets in !erusale" are e:tre"ely difficult they have hills with aw#ward steps. =nd yet !esus "ade a genuine effort to carry that cross. He couldn<t do it and he stu"bled and fell. !esus could called ten thousand angels to help hi" but he sub"itted co"pletely to those that would #ill hi". 0hy> )ecause he loved you and he loved "e too "uch not to go through with it. Cou "eant so "uch to hi" that he couldn<t turn his bac# on you. %( 'he 3a"b had seven horns. In the 1ld 'esta"ent the horn stands for two things: a. /irstly it stands for sheer power. In the blessing of 2oses the horns of !oseph are li#ened to the horns of a wild o: and with the" ,he will gore the nations- 4Ft. ++:18(* Hede#iah the prophet "ade iron horns as a sign of a pro"ised triu"ph over the Dyrians 41 5ings %%:11(* Hechariah sees a vision of four horns which are the nations who have scattered Israel* b. Decondly the horn stands for honour. =ccording to 7sal" 96:18 the horn is e:alted* In 7sal" 11%:6 it says that ,his horn will be lifted high in honour-* and in 7sal" 149:14 we are told that .od has raised up a horn for his people. 'he 3a"b has seven horns. Deven in Hebrew is the perfect nu"ber and hence the 3a"b possesses perfect power. 'hat is to say that the 3a"b is o"nipotent all powerful. +( 'he 3a"b has seven eyes. 'his picture is si"ilar to the vision of Hechariah in which he sees seven la"ps which are ,the eyes of the 3ord which range throughout the earth- 4Hech. 4:1&(. 'he seven eyes of the 3a"b therefore

sy"bolise o"niscience being conscious of all things everywhere. Do in this picture of the 3a"b loo#ing as it were slain we see both , ee!ness and a"esty-. 'he "a@esty and power of the 3ion the "ee#ness and wea#ness of the la"b. 'he word that !ohn used of the 3a"b was the .ree# . 'his is distinct fro" the .ree# which "eans a year old sacrificial la"b a la"b without ble"ish. 'he word "eans a young la"b a little la"b. It e"phasises the idea of wea#ness. is not used to describe ?hrist in any Bew 'esta"ent boo# e:cept Revelation which uses the word %9 ti"es in this connection. .raha" 5endric# has understood this picture and has written a chorus about it. 2ee#ness and 2a@esty 2anhood and deity In perfect har"ony 'he "an who is .od: 3ord of infinity Fwells in hu"anity 5nees in hu"ility =nd washes our feet. 0isdo" unsearchable .od the Invisible 3ove indestructible In frailty appears. 3ord of infinity Dtooping so tenderly 3ifts our hu"anity 'o the heights of His throne. :h, what a mystery, ;ee(ness and majesty: "ow down and worship, <or this is your 0od, +his is your 0od.

I love this picture of !esus. It holds together the i"age of !esus as the =l"ighty all powerful .od with the tenderness and approachableness of the new born la"b. 'his boo# is the Revelation of !esus ?hrist. It depicts !esus as He really is. 0hen He was here on earth He laid aside his glory but here in Revelation we see Hi" co"ing in His glory. 3oo# at Revelation 16 for e:a"ple:
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I saw hea!en standing open and there "efore me was a white horse, whose rider is called <aithful and +rue. 3ith justice he judges and ma(es war. 12.is eyes are li(e "la=ing fire, and on his head are many crowns. .e has a name written on him that no'one (nows "ut he himself. 16.e is dressed in a ro"e dipped in "lood, and his name is the 3ord of 0od.
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+he armies of hea!en were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.

:ut of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to stri(e down the nations. *.e will rule them with an iron sceptre., .e treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of 0od #lmighty. 1):n his ro"e and on his thigh he has this name written: >I&0 :< >I&0% #&7 /:?7 :< /:?7%. ?e!elation 1@:11'1) 1ur hope is not in our own ability* it<s !esus ?hrist. Bo wonder the hy"n writer wrote: ;y hope is "uilt on nothing less than JesusA "lood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, "ut wholly lean on JesusA name. :n 1hrist the solid roc( I stand, all other ground is sin(ing sand$ all other ground is sin(ing sand.

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