The Unbridled Glory of God

The Unbridled Glory of God
Revelation 4.8-11
8Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come." 9Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, 10the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: 11"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."

I just recently got done listening to the opening to Bach's "Mass in B-Minor." For those who don't know, the Ordinary of the Mass is the set of texts sung by the Catholic Church that remain relatively fixed. The opening text sung by the choir is "Kyrie Eleison," the words of which state in Latin translated from Greek: "Kýrie, eléison; Christé, eléison; Kýrie, eléison." In English it reads, "Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy." Bach's version in B-Minor can be listened to here(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi6fhfkZFoA). Keep in mind this is the OPENING choir song for a service. And Bach composes it in B-minor! I say all of this to illustrate a point--the early Christians(for this chant significantly predates Bach) were incredibly serious about their worship. They wanted to enter with an attitude of humbleness--an attitude that recognizes the sovereignty and mercy of Christ. Why? They understood the incredible glory of God--a lesson we can learn from.

In Revelation 4 we see a picture of four living creatures and twenty for elders seated around the throne of God. The glory is so great that "[d]ay and night [the four creatures] never stop saying: 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.' " Likewise, "whenever the living creatures" proclaim this, "the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever." What a powerful proclamation, and yet so true! The glory of God is enough to make us fall on the face and shout to the top of our lungs, "Holy, holy, holy!" It should make us cast down our crowns and proclaim God as "worthy to receive glory and honor and power."

We need to take God's glory seriously. I did not simply mention the Ordinary of the Mass to bridge into the lesson--it is also crucial that you understand the attitude of worship which these people undertook. They were serious and passionate about their worship, because they knew it was all for the glory of God. They did not wish to do anything to dishonor the presence of God. We, too, should possess a similar attitude. While worship can be fun, cheerful, and enjoyable for us, let us not forget its true purpose--to bring glory to the Almighty God. We come together in His presence, and this is a very serious ordeal. Sadly, many 21st Century cliches have slowly chipped away at the reverence we should maintain for God. We come into worship with sayings like, "Just leave your troubles and worries at the door and let's come to worship!" Is that really what God wishes us to do? As Pastor David Platt puts it, "No; bring your worries and troubles into the door." The glory of God is best manifested in us when we are completely humble and submissive to His will. This means that our hearts are honest and open to the will and call of the Lord. His glory overwhelms us, and suddenly "The Man Upstairs" appears too trivial a term to ever apply to Elohim--Him whose name is so holy that the modern Jews will not even speak it. Do we have that same standard of holiness in our worship?

Is your worship like the four creatures and the twenty four elders? Does it contain the passion in the words of that mass: "Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy." Beloved, may we seek the glory of God! Although it is too much for us now, one day we shall see it in full splendor. We will have no need to talk about it; we will experience it firsthand! If your worship or your relationship with God has not been sincere, then I urge you to come before the throne of God today and let Jesus cleanse you. God's glory shines on His children--He can heal us totally to place us in His will. Will you live your life in awe and reverence of Him? Amen.

With love in Christ,



Austin Aldrich