BY ADAM NELSON
The Significance of Creation in Worship
“‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!’” (Rev. 4:8). As a Christian, it is almost impossible to have never heard those words in succession, and everyone likely has at least a vague recollection of an idea of a God so powerful and almighty, He transcends our simple understanding of time that says all things are finite. One might question why so many people across all nations, regardless of the many differences that stand to separate us, continuously give praise to a higher being they have not personally witnessed. But in truth, we have all seen God every day of our lives — through the works of His hands.
How can one not appreciate the extravagance of abstract, theoretical science and mathematics, or wonder longingly at the stars in the dimly lit night sky, or be amazed by the punctual revolution of the Earth around the Sun that gives us the light of day, or marvel at the endless expanse of water that is the oceans, or ponder how water sustains all life on Earth, and without it, life would be impossible? Through an endless array of miracles observed by the human eye each and every day, we must gain a deeper sense of awe that this world is someone’s masterpiece. Admittedly, we may not have had the fortune of seeing Jesus come down from Heaven to perform miracles as he walked the Earth, but we have irrefutably witnessed God’s immaculate creation, and that is reason enough alone to offer Him who sits on His Heavenly throne undying praise and worship.
Within The Revelation of Jesus Christ given to John on the Isle of Patmos, the initial mesmerizing description of the Heavenly throne room and its four living creatures beyond human comprehension may distract from what this passage actually reveals to us. One on each side of the grandest throne, these creatures have an abundance of eyes and six wings, signifying God’s perfect wisdom and judgment and great haste in performing God’s will across the four corners of the Earth. They each take the individual resemblance of a lion, an ox, the face of man, and an eagle in flight. These creatures, in their unique attributes of power and strength, servitude and humility, intelligence and rationality, and swiftness — like all of Creation — praise their Creator. Taking that into account, we realize we are not so different from these extraterrestrial beings, or at least we were not intended to be by our Creator, for these four creatures constantly offer praises and worship the one on the center throne, proclaiming, “‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come’” (Rev. 4:8).
In response to the four creatures, we see 24 elders on their thrones surrounding the throne of the Most High fall down before the Lord and cast their crowns before him, their symbols of authority, chanting, “‘Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things and by Your will they existed and were created’” (Rev. 4:11). The praise of these elders acknowledges God on the grounds that He alone brought all of creation into existence. This explicit display of never-ending, profound, and passionate Heavenly worship should be a stark call to action for all of us on Earth. Firstly, we should be reminded of the constant praise that only the Lord, our God deserves as Creator of Heaven and Earth. And with that praise, we must summon and maintain at all times the same sense of joy we find in worship when God exhibits His will in our lives. Each time we give thanks to Him for the act of creation alone, it cannot lose meaning and become disingenuous as though we are going through the motions of prayer.
If a friend, neighbor, or family member performed a simple favor, one would be reasonably courteous and thank them; should we not approach things similarly when it comes to the maker of all Heaven and Earth just because the work He’s done is so fundamental to our existences we take it for granted? Has he not given us all things with the gift of His only son to bear the cross for all sin on our behalf? Yet, all He asks in return is that we give Him thanks and honor His will, and even that is often too difficult or too arduous for us to fulfill!
How often do we turn to God only when things have gone wrong or when we want to ask something of Him? How rarely do we offer anything in return for His awesome and unending grace, love, and kindness? Of course there’s nothing we can offer Him that can equal or even compare to a fraction of the continuous and tremendous grace He has shown for us, but the least we can do as faithful witnesses to His deeds is to pray always. Now, I don’t necessarily mean that every waking moment of our lives needs to be spent in conversation with God, although that would be ideal. But we must seek a life which regularly reflects on God’s goodness — for He created all things good, and all good there is, He created. We must raise worship, devotion, glory, honor, and praise to Him and strive to reclaim and rediscover our love for Him each day. In all of this, we must return to (or find) the heart of worship.
Even if we cannot find the words to express our thanks, He will once again come to our rescue and guide us. How ironic that even the most articulate words and beautiful things we can present at His feet actually come through Him! As the Hymn writer said, “All things are thine, no gifts have we, Lord of all gifts to offer thee; and hence with grateful hearts today, thine own before thy feet we lay.” Nevertheless, when we make a habit of worshiping our Lord and savior this way, we must not let repetition turn into monotony and thus lose the strong love and meaning behind our words of praise. So let this be a reminder to worship and pray fervently, “‘Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created’” (Rev. 4:11). Revelation may be a depiction of the end of all things, but it still undeniably has much to say about the beginning of all things and the necessity of devout worship for the act of creation alone.
Submission to Authority: Rule and Government
In addition to its explicit reminder to worship, there is no mistaking that Chapter 4 of the Revelation to John also instructs on the motifs of rule and power. Jesus provides John a vision of ascending to the Heavens to bear witness to the heavenly purpose of government within the created order and to the direction and delegation of tasks to others through an authoritative command chain. In this case, John must spread word of what he has seen in Heaven to the seven churches, informing them to withstand the trials of this life and take action to address their shortcomings, for the end times are approaching soon.
In this vision, after John ascends to Heaven to witness the Revelation of Jesus Christ, he immediately falls down on his face, the same reaction Ezekiel had when he was granted a very similar vision. The almighty power and glory of God is further symbolized through the flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder. John and Ezekiel’s awe of God’s might is so potent they lose the ability to stand in His presence and instead assume the position of worship of the one seated on the throne. This delivers such a physical and tangible image of the power and majesty held by our God, so of course John and Ezekiel’s natural response is to fall to their knees and obey the commands of a ruler so wise.
The themes of rule and government are even more developed in Ezekiel’s vision where four very similar living creatures follow wherever the Spirit orders them. These heavenly creatures accomplish God’s commands without even having to turn their bodies since they have the face of a lion, ox, man, and eagle on each side of their head. This shows how quickly and harmoniously heavenly beings embark to perform God’s will and busily traverse the four corners of the Earth conducting God’s work without hesitation.
Even the mesmerizing throne of this vision projects the rule and authority of God over the nations and their people, as the Lord’s throne is surrounded by the creatures and 24 elders while directing them. This imagery and positioning of God at the center of the Kingdom of Heaven displays the concept of governmental rule even further.
Generally, the concept of despotism suggests a negative connotation of absolute power abused in a cruel or oppressive manner, but with this vision of our Heavenly Father, we know He retains the most high rule and judgment, yet treats His humble servants with love and grace. In the throne room in Heaven, submitting to the one true authority of the Father, there are 24 elders who have been redeemed by Christ and invited to jointly rule with Him. They are clothed in white and each given their own throne surrounding Him and a golden crown to rest above their heads, symbolizing their own fraction of authority delegated by their ruler. However, each time they give thanks to the Lord, they cast away their crowns and fall from their thrones, for they know God is wholly responsible for their rewards and possessions. This illustrates the power dynamic that these elders have some authority in Heaven, but they willingly submit to the most-high God. Furthermore, their white clothes symbolize that God has forgiven them and purified them of all their sins. It is hard to imagine such modesty and restraint from earthly rulers.
Similarly, God shares His kingdom with all the inhabitants of the Earth who choose to follow the narrow path, for John tells us:
I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years …. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with Him for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:4-6)
In addition, we know that God will then share His new Jerusalem, His new Heaven, and His new Earth with His followers too: “The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son” (Revelation 21:7). God proves the sole example of power and dominion not corrupting one’s judgement and kindness, for He is always faithful, provides wisdom and nourishment for our souls all the time, and generously offers his new eternal creation to those who refuse to give in to temptation and Earthly things while we patiently wait for His coming. Then, at last, we may dwell with our creator!
Conclusion
The themes of wholehearted worship and God’s absolute authority in Revelation Chapter 4 display clearly defined requirements of us as God’s children. The beauty and mystery of the Bible is that every passage contains information directly relevant to us. In this case, the Father commands us to submit to His authority and acknowledge His strength, rule, power, and authority as Creator and Governor of all things. We are to be His hands and feet like the winged creatures. We are to follow His orders to testify of His love and compassion. We are to give thanks that our King is not a tyrant but a humble, wise, and graceful leader in whom we can put our faith and trust. And we are to praise God for giving us this life and all creation, just as the 24 elders do in Heaven.