Inaugural Event
Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all therein, saying, "To him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might for ever and ever!" And the four living creatures said, "Amen!" and the elders fell down and worshiped. Rev. 5:11-14, RSV.
The scene now shifts. The Ascension not only means that the resurrected Christ depart from the earth, but also that He arrives in heaven. And He doesn't do so merely as a weary pilgrim but as a conquering King. Jesus has completed the work that He left His place in heaven to accomplish. Now He is inaugurated or, more accurately, reinaugurated as the one worthy to take an equal place with the Father on His throne.
Thus the scene shifts from the disciples rejoicing in the earthly Temple to the angelic hosts praising in the heavenly Temple. In that great Temple scene Revelation 4 and 5 present a sequence of praises as the Lamb rejoins the Father on inauguration day.
The praises focus on Jesus' worthiness as "the Lamb who was slain." At the cross heaven defeated Satan. That event assured the security of a universe in trouble. It is now history. The present for the heavenly throng is praise and adoration in the superlative.
And what is the worthy inaugural Lamb to receive? Power for one thing. The risen Christ, sitting on the throne of the universe, will be able to dispense power to His followers on earth. The first earthward expression of that power takes place on the day of Pentecost when the apostles receive the blessing of the Holy Spirit. Thus the inauguration had an earthly side. Once again we see a connection between events on earth and heavenly realities. With Jesus on the throne His followers on earth are assured of heavenly gifts.
Power, of course, is but one item in the list of gifts to the Lamb who was slain--wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing are also His. The inaugural scene closes with the entire universe joining in on the greatest praise session in the history of the universe.
As we seek to grasp the reality and wonder of these events, we need carefully to study and meditate upon the songs of Revelation 4 and 5. They will help us enter more fully into true worship as we apply these lessons to our daily devotional life.
Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all therein, saying, "To him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might for ever and ever!" And the four living creatures said, "Amen!" and the elders fell down and worshiped. Rev. 5:11-14, RSV.
The scene now shifts. The Ascension not only means that the resurrected Christ depart from the earth, but also that He arrives in heaven. And He doesn't do so merely as a weary pilgrim but as a conquering King. Jesus has completed the work that He left His place in heaven to accomplish. Now He is inaugurated or, more accurately, reinaugurated as the one worthy to take an equal place with the Father on His throne.
Thus the scene shifts from the disciples rejoicing in the earthly Temple to the angelic hosts praising in the heavenly Temple. In that great Temple scene Revelation 4 and 5 present a sequence of praises as the Lamb rejoins the Father on inauguration day.
The praises focus on Jesus' worthiness as "the Lamb who was slain." At the cross heaven defeated Satan. That event assured the security of a universe in trouble. It is now history. The present for the heavenly throng is praise and adoration in the superlative.
And what is the worthy inaugural Lamb to receive? Power for one thing. The risen Christ, sitting on the throne of the universe, will be able to dispense power to His followers on earth. The first earthward expression of that power takes place on the day of Pentecost when the apostles receive the blessing of the Holy Spirit. Thus the inauguration had an earthly side. Once again we see a connection between events on earth and heavenly realities. With Jesus on the throne His followers on earth are assured of heavenly gifts.
Power, of course, is but one item in the list of gifts to the Lamb who was slain--wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing are also His. The inaugural scene closes with the entire universe joining in on the greatest praise session in the history of the universe.
As we seek to grasp the reality and wonder of these events, we need carefully to study and meditate upon the songs of Revelation 4 and 5. They will help us enter more fully into true worship as we apply these lessons to our daily devotional life.
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