By Shirley Rosemarie Evans
Then I saw a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing between the throne and the four living beings and among the twenty-four elders.
He had seven horns and seven eyes, which represent the sevenfold Spirit of God that is sent out into every part of the earth. He stepped forward and took the scroll from the right hand of the one sitting on the throne. And when he took the scroll, the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they held gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.
And they sang a new song with these words:
“You are worthy to take the scroll
and break its seals and open it.
For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation.
And you have caused them to become
a Kingdom of priests for our God.
And they will reign on the earth.”
Revelation 5:6-10 NLT
Have you been singing at the kitchen sink or reading a passage of scripture sitting on your bed, or even driving in your car and a gospel song plays, and suddenly the atmosphere shifts, you are transported, you are in the presence of Jesus, and you are moved to worship, the tears flow, and the words of adoration and praise burst forth from your lips. Your worship is so sweet, free and overflowing that you are moved for days after. We live for these moments, don’t we?
This is exactly what is taking place in this heavenly scene. We are given a front row seat with John to a worship scene in heaven. This is a spontaneous outburst in response to the lamb being found worthy to break the seals of the scroll. Jesus is that lamb that was slaughtered. His sinless life, His death on the cross for the sins of humanity, and His resurrection from the grave and accession into heaven qualify Him as the one who was worthy to take the scroll.
The scroll represents the decrees of God concerning His revelations and plans for the history and future of the world, that is, for humanity and for Satan and his angels. It is a plan for salvation and judgment. A plan that was in place before the foundation of the world set in motion in the garden of Eden with the fall of humanity, partly delivered with the plan of salvation as revealed through Jesus. The plan continues to tell us how this world and Satan’s Kingdom will come to an end so that the eternal Kingdom of God can be established. The scroll is sealed, meaning it is complete and cannot be changed.
The worshippers around the throne give three reasons for His being worthy.
- He is the Lamb that was slain – When all of humanity was doomed to eternal damnation, we were helpless and hopeless, unable to reach God, so He reached out to us by sending His son to die for the sins of the world.
- His blood ransomed people for God– We were enslaved to sin and under Satan’s control. Like a kidnapping, a ransom must be paid to release those held captive. The blood of Jesus was that ransom.
- He has made us a kingdom of Priests & kings- He did not merely set us free but made us priests and kings in His kingdom. We are royalty willingly serving our King. Our lives have purpose as we live out the good plans we were created for.
We, the ransomed, join in worship around the throne and declare that, yes, He alone is worthy. Jesus is worthy because He is fully God. He is Worthy because he is the sacrifice for our sins, worthy because he has the power to transform lives, giving hope and a future, and worthy because the whole of History, past, present, and future, is under His control. He is the king, and He has a Kingdom that was, which is, and which is yet to come.
Ask: Why was Jesus the only one in the history of the world and in heaven that was worthy to open the scroll?
Seek: How do you respond to the knowledge that Jesus is worthy?
Knock: Sing a song of praise to King Jesus – expressing how worthy He is.
