It’s easy to think the world is out of control and our lives are random. When things are hard, it’s easy to stop believing in God and doubt if He’s real. Then Revelation 4 comes along and shows us what’s really happening in this world. God occupies the throne of heaven. He is infinitely beautiful and glorious. He is the center of all creation and is worshiped by angelic beings. There is nobody like Him. Nobody deserves our allegiance or worship other than Him. There’s nobody worth building our lives around other than Him.

We have something in common, you and I. We want to know what truly matters in life. We aim to build our lives around something meaningful, something that will endure. We don’t want to reach the end of our lives and realize we wasted them chasing things that don’t matter.

But that’s not all. We want the same for our kids. We want to steer them away from distractions and dangers. We hope they invest their lives in what really matters, maybe even more than we do ourselves. We want our kids to pursue what is most important.

Let me expand this vision further. As we begin a new year as a church, we need to focus on what matters most. It’s easy for a church to get distracted by things that aren’t important. This will only become harder as we face struggles, judgment, opposition, and obstacles.

So let me ask you: What will keep us focused on what matters most? What will keep our kids focused on what matters most? And what will keep our church focused on what matters most?

Well, this chapter of Revelation provides a clear answer. We need a vision of God who sits on his throne. And that’s exactly what this chapter gives us. This chapter gives us what you, your children, and our church needs most. This chapter gives us a vision of God who sits on his throne, and if we get this vision too, it could change our lives forever.

Revelation So Far

For the past few months, we’ve been studying the book of Revelation. Today, we’re picking it up again after a break over Christmas. Revelation was written by John, the beloved disciple of Jesus, who also authored the Gospel of John and the three letters (1st, 2nd, and 3rd John). He wrote it in the mid-90s on the island of Patmos. It was addressed to a group of 1st-century churches in the Roman province of Asia, which is now called Turkey. However, it has a message for churches everywhere.

At the time this book was written, the church was small and outnumbered, while the Roman Empire was very powerful. In Revelation 1, we get a vision of Jesus Christ. It’s like the curtains of heaven are pulled back, and we get a view of Jesus Christ, our exalted and conquering Lord.

And then in chapters 2 and 3, Jesus writes to seven churches, which represent churches in all times and all places. He has a message for these struggling churches. These churches have all kinds of strengths and struggles. He encourages them, confronts them with challenges, and calls them to be faithful.

A Vision of God

But now Revelation shifts. Jesus has spoken to his churches, but in chapter 4, John receives a second vision. And what is the vision that John receives? He receives a vision of God who sits on his throne.

It’s a vision that continues into chapter 5. It’s an adoration ceremony where John sees God in his glory. He witnesses the indescribable majesty and transcendent glory of God. Although John is in Patmos, he’s transported to the throne room of heaven and gains a completely different perspective on what’s happening in the world. Christians are not just a small minority; God rules from heaven, and his people are safe.

John catches a glimpse of God’s majestic presence, and this changes everything. In many ways, what happens in chapter 4 is similar to what’s happened before:

• to what Moses witnessed in Exodus 34, when the Lord made his goodness pass before Moses and proclaimed his name to him;
• to what Isaiah saw in Isaiah 6 when he saw “the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple”;
• to what Ezekiel saw in Ezekiel 1 when, while in Exile in Babylon, he says, “the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God” (Ezekiel 1:1);
• or to what Daniel saw in Daniel 7:9 when “thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat.”

What do all these appearances of the glory of God have in common? The answer is they all happened when things looked bleak. Moses saw God’s glory when the covenant was in danger after the people had sinned. Isaiah saw God’s glory during a time of political turmoil, when the king died, the nation was on decline, and powerful nations were rising. Ezekiel and Daniel both saw visions of God’s glory while in exile. Now, John sees a vision of God’s glory when the church is small and struggling, and he himself is in exile.

What do God’s people need most when things look bleak? They need a vision of the glory and majesty of God. We’re not that different. As we’re struggling, as our lives unfold, the same realities that were true back then are true of us today, and we need these realities. As James Hamilton says:

You are surrounded by the glory of God. God is revealing himself in glory to you right now as we consider what chapters 4, 5 show us about the Creator and Redeemer. God reveals himself to you in his creation, which reflects his glory, and God reveals himself in a uniquely precise way in the Bible that he inspired. With the glory of God in creation all around you and with the Bible before you, you are surrounded by God’s glory. Drink it in and pray that God will set you free from the world’s idolatry, immorality, and godless way of interpreting life.

Revelation 4 shows us four things.

First, we see what’s happening right now.

After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” (4:1)

This vision takes place while John is in Patmos. While he’s in exile, he gets a picture of what’s going on at that very moment in heaven. He gets a glimpse of what’s really going on in the world despite all appearances to the contrary. While on a rocky island in the Mediterranean Sea, Jesus pulls back the curtain, opens a door, and gives John a picture of what’s happening right now.

Second, we see a glimpse of God’s glory.

“At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne” (4:2).

John sees two things: a throne standing in heaven and someone sitting on it. The throne represents the place from which the whole universe is ruled. Right away, we’re comforted. Sometimes it looks like the throne of the universe is unoccupied, that things are in complete chaos.

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