There is an old story which was passed down to me by one of my mentors, Dog
James. If you like this story give him credit. If you don’t like it blame me for telling it. It
was about this time of year when a mother was beginning to make her plans for Christmas
gifts so she called in her son and asked him for some suggestions. Being about 11 or 12
years old he said, I would like a BB gun. Oh, said the mother, if you get a BB gun you
won’t be happy until you shoot your eye out. So she got him a football.
Well, the boy grew up to become a great football player, playing in the NFL and
becoming the greatest quarterback the game had ever known. But on the day he was
inducted into the Hall of Fame, after receiving just about every award a player can receive,
and being paid more than any player in history, he said, I’m depressed.
And he was, he was so depressed he decided he would visit the team psychiatrist.
When he met the psychiatrist he laid down on the couch and said, “doc, I am so
depressed. I have accomplished everything there is to accomplish in the game of football
but I am just not happy. At this doctor immediately asked, “Did you ever shoot your eye
out with a BB gun?”
Friends, everyone last one of us has a hole in his/her heart. Actually they are not
holes, they are craters. I call them that because of their size. These craters are so big that
only God can fill them. Trying to plug them with anything else is just an exersize in
futulity and frustration. Are you feeling frustrated with your life today? Are you
depressed? Are you unhappy? Are you unfulfilled and unsatisfied? If you answered any
of those questions with yes then you need to check your worship. For when we attempt
to fill those holes in our hearts with anything but God, we are always, always, always
frustratied and unfulfilled. Hear that again. You have a worship problem when you are
unhappy, joyless, not at peace, worried even depressed because you are trying to fill the
void in your heart with the wrong thing.
The devil knows this. Think about the very first time man sinned in the garden. It
was all about worship. Adam and Eve filled their lives with God and let him worry about
their personal fulfillment and all was well. But Satan came a long and convinced Eve to to
things her own way, to become a God herself and Adam took the same bait and suddenly
they knew fear and worry and hardhip and later murder and sickness and finally death. All
because they had a worship problem.
Would you like to have more joy today? Would you like to leave here with more
peace in your heart? Would you like to leave the worship services each Sunday with a
greater sense of having worshipped? Then listen to these words today. Look with me as
we take a peek, along with John, at a heavenly worship scene. I believe we can learn what
God expects should be taking place when we worship, especially in a service on Sunday or
whenever we get together. But more than that, we can begin to discover real joy and
peace and less stress and worry and unhappiness in our own lives. Does that appeal to
you? Come along with me as we leave this earth and see how worship takes place in
heaven.
As a third-century man was anticipating death, he penned these last words to a
friend: "It’s a bad world, an incredibly bad world. But I have discovered in the midst of it a
quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret. They have found a joy which is a
thousand times better than any pleasure of our sinful life. They are despised and
persecuted, but they care not. They are masters of their souls. They have overcome the
world. These people are the Christians--and I am one of them."
As John and the rest of us are given a glimpse of this heavenly worship service we
notice that it is anything but passive. There is a great deal of activity taking place. If there
is one attitude I could change over all the other mistaken attitudes of worship that has
come to us from the past, and mind you this comes from the Catholic tradition, it is this
view that we come to sit in worship and watch while the professionals do all the work.
That’s not the way it is in heaven. Here God is the one seated passively while the
worshippers are doing the work. I wish that more would come with the mindset that they
were to be involved in the worship. Maybe if we took the padding off the pews that
would be a start, I don’t know. Worship in America has been described like a football
game. At a football game you have up to 100,000 mostly lethargic, out of shape people
sit and watch 22 of the most physically conditioned players in the world do all the work.
Likewise thousands if not millions of spiritually out of shape people come to worship each
week and sit while one or two who have spent the week in prayer and study do the
worshipping. What’s wrong with this picture?
It’s not like that in heaven. In heaven the worshippers are in action, the one being
worshipped sits and receives. This is one reason I can never understand people leaving
church and saying, I didn’t get anything out of worship today. That’s becasue you aren’t
supposed to. We should always ask, how much did we put in to worship today. Or, I
wonder how much God got out of my worship today. That is the proper order according
to this heavenly model.
So what activities are taking place in this heavenly worship service. These will be
our main points of emphasis today. What we see is this:
God’s people throwing their faces down
God’s people throwing their crowns down
God’s people lifiting their praises up.
As John looks in on this scene,he sees some unusual sights. These creatures with
different faces and so many eyes. And these crowned men seated around God. If you’ve
ever studied this book you kow that the exact meanings of these symbols have been
argued and debated and I don’t intend to add to that here. Let me just say I believe these
creatures symbolize God’s natural creation. Thus nature worships God. Isaiah, writing
about the spreading of God’s word says, the mountains and the hills shall break forth
before you into singing and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. And the
Psalmist in speaking of salvation in Ps. 98 writes, Make a joyful noise to the Lord ALL the
earth, and rejoice and sing praise. He is talking about the natural earth there. So in
heaven things are in their proper order as far as nature is concerned. Nature worships
God, nature is not worshipped.
Then we find these 24 men sitting around the throne of God. Again many
suggestions have been given, most with some merit. I believe these are the 12 patriarchs
of the OT tribes and the 12 apostles of the NT. Together these represent all the people of
God throughout history. So their actions are a representation of all God’s people
throughout the years. In other words, what they do is what we will be doing. That is why
I say this is God’s people doing all these things.
I. GOD’S PEOPLE THROWING THEIR FACES DOWN
This is the spiritual part of the worship. This is when we get our hearts and minds
in the right condition so that we may worship truly. Obviosly this is about humbling
ourselves. Humility was a dirty word in John’s day. It was the same as weakness and
cowardice. If you were humble it meant you would be walked all over and you could not
allow that to happen and survive they believed. In fact humility was primarily a Christian
invention in that day. At least Christ was the first teacher to make it a positive attitude.
Is it really any different today. We worship success don’t we? We talk about
making the sale, winning the game, getting an edge in life. If you want to be successful
you must intimidate. If you want to be considered successful you must play a certain role
which includes achieving a certain status. We too fear having others get more than
ourselves or getting something we believe we deserve. So we don’t desire humility today
any more than in John’s or Jesus’ day.
I was talking to a fellow minister recently and we were talking about the lack of
committment to anything having to do with the church on the part of most members. He
has served several churches in his years of ministry and he remarked that easily this one in
McLean county was his toughest. The reason he gave was that we have such a high
standard of living here that very few are truly appreciative for what they have. He told me
that he had looked at some charts and that the income per person in this county is higher
than some small countries. We have indeed been blessed here. But with blessings and
prosperity can come apathy and pride. And if you think about your own schedule you
can’t help but realize that much more of your time is spent for work or pleasure than for
the Lord. This all comes down to one thing, we need a fresh infusion of humility.
In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia.
Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the
disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It
wasn’t a technology problem like radar malfunction--or even thick fog. The cause was
human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship’s presence nearby. Both
could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give
way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses,
it was too late.
King David was out one night looking up at the stars and suddenly he got an
inspiration. He said in that moment, “When I gaze up at the stars, the works of your
hands it makes me wonder, what is man that you even think about him.” Do you ever
wonder about that? Do you ever wonder as you consider your life how God could even
think about you as great as He is? Warren Wiersbe, christian author in his book Real
Worship suggests that worship involves 3 things, WONDER, WITNESS AND
WARFARE. And he relates that he believes our worship is stagnant at times because we
have lost our sense of wonder. In other words we sing the song Our God is and
Awesome God, but do we really think that? We live in an age where everything is
explained to the smallest detail. So, we think we have all the answers. Most in the church
have been through numerous classes, heard hundreds of sermons and read and studied for
themselves most all their lives. What questions do we have about God. We have had him
described, defined, characterized, and profiled. Small wonder that when we enter the
sanctuary we have to be wowed or we quickly tune out what is going on in the service.
When Jesus said we must become like children, this was part of what he had in
mind, I’m sure. Children have a tremendous sense of wonder. Last week I understand a
fireman visited the pre-school here in town. He had one of the trucks, some equipement,
and the uniform, including helmet and oxygen tank that they wear on duty. Now if you
would have been there as an adult I’m sure it would have been nothing special. But you
should have heard the report from the 4-year olds. Mikal Jordan or Tiger woods or even
the president of the United States would have been nearly as impressive, unless they
would have put on the fireman’s outfit. Sadly friends, we have only 2% of our creativity
and wonder left by the time we turn 40 years old.
But think about it for a moment. God created everything that exists. He made our
bodies so they operate under their own power. You don’t have to be plugged in or
recharged or reset. Your body is an idependant power station. And noone knows for sure
how it works. Noone knows where the spark of energy originates that gets everything
going. He made this universice and set up certain physical laws that never change. The
earth goes in the same direction every year. The seasons come in the same order year
after year. The mountains stay where they are, the seas don’t move around the planet, the
sun continues to burn and the stars are so dependable that sailors have been able to
navigate by them for centuries. That is amazing isn’t it. On and on I could and should go.
But that is what you need to do. Stop and think about all the wonderous things God has
done. Then think about this, even though he is so awesome, his one love is me. He has
chosen to save me, though I reject, rebel and renounce him daily in my life, he still loves
and wishes to spend eternity with me. If that doesn’t stop you in your tracks than you are
too far gone I fear. What did you ever do to deserve love like that? Yet you receive and I
receive it. And the result should be at least a little humility on our part. In eternity the
people of God, in perfect worship, throw their faces down before God. They don’t lift
them now and then to complain or point out the inequalities of their lives. And remember
this, these are ones who were persecuted throughout those lives. But in God’s presence
the only one whose face can be seen is God’s.
If we have a worship problem it probably begins and ends right here, with our own
lack of humilty. May we search our hearts for pride today and clean it out of there. Then
we will begin to discover the joys of real worship.
Loving father, make our hearts like that of a child. Give us again the excitement
and joy of wonder. How wonderful it is that we are even able to wonder. Remove the
scales from our eyes, the callousness from our hearts, the stubbornness from our wills and
enable us to enjoy the wonder of it all. Deliver us from routine worship, from business as
usual, from form without force and liturgy without life. May your Holy Sp;irit energize
that new creation that is now within us and may it be ever new, ever wonderful to the
glory of YOUR name. Amen.
In worship, God’s people first throw down their faces.
II. GOD’S PEOPLE THROW DOWN THEIR CROWNS
This is the phsyical part of worship. Again this is a part many in our society shy
away from. But part of worship is involving yourself physically. What do we do? We
discover this as we see what is meant when these men throw their crowns at the feet of
God. First we need to find out what these crowns represent. There are two words for
crown used in the Bible. The first is diadem. The diadem was the crown a king or ruler
would wear. We sing the song, Bring forth the royal DIADEM, and crown him lord of
all.. Whoever wears the diadem is the ruler. Then there is the word stephen. This is
translated crown in english but a better word would be wreath. It was used at the athletic
games. The winners would be given a wreath to wear much like the gold medals we see at
the Olympics today. Or like the wreath of roses put around the neck of the winning horse
at the Ky. derby. It symolized not power but was a sign that this person had won or had a
great acheivement. This is the kind of crown these 24 are wearing, the crown of the
victory or overcomers. Paul says in 2Ti. 4 I have fought the good fight, I have finished
the race, I have kept the faith: Therefore there is waiting for me a _______ of
righteousness... That is the stephen crown for all those who finish the race and keep the
faith.
So these elders who sit around the throne have receive the wreath of winners. It
signifies that they remained faithful and overcame in their lives. It is a badge of honor just
like a medal would be. So these people of God, as well as all who someday go to heaven,
are honored with these crowns. But what do they do with them? They throw them down.
Why do that? It goes back to humility.
We all have done things we are proud of. I have two certificates that I have
earned that I display in my office, a diploma and an ordination certificate. I am proud of
what they represent. You have similiar objects yourself. But compare whatever you have
accomplished to what God has done. Is there any comparison? Not even close. So these
elders, even though they have done great things in their lives, understand that they are in
the presence of the greatest, it embarrases them to even think about getting any attention,
so they throw their crowns away, showing humility and that there is truly only one who
deserves and recognition.
Now how does that apply to you and me? It is about pride and embarrasement in
worship and we are a people who just will not allow ourselves to look or be seen in any
way that we might be embarrassed. Therefor when hymns are being sung and we are
afraid someone might hear us be out of tune, we refuse to sing. When a worship leader
asks us to stand up or do some motions or even smile as they lead, we cross our arms and
resolutely refuse to take part. And don’t even think about doing something a little
differently than we have become comfortable with over these many years. It’s all about
who is wearing the crown, you see.
At a reception honoring musician Sir Robert Mayer on his 100th birthday, elderly
British socialite Lady Diana Cooper fell into conversation with a friendly woman who
seemed to know her well. Lady Diana’s failing eyesight prevented her from recognizing
her fellow guest, until she peered more closely at the magnificent diamonds and realized
she was talking to Queen Elizabeth! Overcome with embarrassment, Lady Diana curtsied
and stammered, "Ma’am, oh, ma’am, I’m sorry ma’am. I didn’t recognize you without your
crown!"
"It was so much Sir Robert’s evening," the queen replied, "that I decided to leave it
behind."
When we come to worship, whose evening is it in your mind? Do you hang on
teneaciously to your crown or are you willing to drop all pretenses, for that is really what
they are, in God’s presence we are truly nothing, and get yourself involved in worship.
If you have a worship problem maybe its because you are trying to keep your
crown. That precludes any worship for how can you in one breath claim God is great but
in the next put yourself above him, at least in your own mind. May we understand who is
to be the focus of our worship. May we empty ourselves and Christ did when he came to
this earth. Do you think Jesus made any personal sacrifices coming from heaven to earth?
Do you think he ever did anything that was uncomfortable? Was he ever ridiculed and
insulted? Did it stop him from living a life of worship of the heavenly father?
The difference between real worship and just going through the motions is the
answer to that question, who is wearing the crown. Most churches in America today are
still full of people with their faces up. And why not, if you bow your crown will fall off.
Throw your crown down. Get yourself physically involved in worship. If you lose
face who cares, you are gaining peace and joy and satisfaction. And that is what they do
in heaven so we might as well get into the practice now anyway.
In heavenly worship God’s people throw down their crowns
III. GOD’S PEOPLE LIFT UP THEIR PRAISES
This is the verbal aspect of our worship. We have seen that we are invovled
spiritually, phyisically and now verbally in worship. At least that is the model from heaven
that we are given. This is the song service in our worship time. In other places the
revelation describes this singing as the sound of rushing waters. If you’ve ever seen and
heard a waterfall or rapids you can get the idea of what this is. In a word it is LOUD!
Now why is it so loud? Because these worshippers have humbled themselves by
lowering their faces and casting of their crowns. In their minds now there is only one
person present, the Lord God Almighty that they sing about. There is no room for their
own thoughts or feelings here. He alone is worthy of glory and honor and power. He
alone is the creator. But in spite of his greatness and their lowliness, they remember that
he still chose them. He still loved them enough to sacrifice his only begotten son. He
cared about them enough to send his Spirit as a comforter and a guide for their lives, even
when they were being put to death and it so inspires them and thrills them that they sing.
Compare that to man a modern service which could easily take place in a library
and never disturb a soul. Reverence is not displayed in silence here but in great and loud
singing of praise. Remember when on the day Jesus rode into the Jerusalem, how the
people shouted Hosana, and those Pharisees ordered Jesus to make them be quiet?
Remember how Jesus replied, “If I tell them to be quiet, the rocks and trees will continue
take up the cheer.” When you are in the presence of God you cannot help but proclaim
his praises.
So this begs a question. How often when we gather to worship are we truly in
God’s presence. When we sit with hands folded, minds tuned out or asleep and voices
reserved I have to wonder if we are in God’s presence? Worship involves spirit, body and
voice. If you have a worship problem, perhaps you are not fully involved in worship. My
prayer for this church is that we get involved in worship. Then we will be able to enjoy
the blessings that real worship can provide.
It is said of one of the famous composers that he had a rebellious son who used to
come in late at night after his father and mother had gone to bed. And before going to his
own room, he would go to his father’s piano and slowly, as well as loudly, play a simple
scale, all but the final note. Then leaving the scale uncompleted, he would retire to his
room. Meanwhile the father, hearing the scale minus the final note, would writhe on his
bed, his mind unable to relax because the scale was unresolved. Finally, in consternation,
he would stumble down the stairs and hit the previously unstruck note. Only then would
his mind surrender to sleep once again.
Is something in life troubling you? Do you lie in bed awake night after night?
Maybe that last note of worship is missing from your life. Won’t you arise and provide it
so that you can get some rest?
