Free Reformed Church of Kelmscott
"BETWEEN EARTH AND HEAVEN IS AN OPEN DOOR!"
Scripture Reading:
Revelation 4
Acts 4:23-35
Singing: (Psalms and Hymns are from the "Book of Praise"
Anglo Genevan Psalter)
Hymn 4:1,2,3,4
Psalm 97:5,6
Psalm 46:1,3,5
Psalm 2:1,2,3,4
Hymn 40:1,3,4
Beloved Congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ!
The world in which we live is big. One can travel at length, to exotic places. People have been to the moon, and there are plans in the making to send men to Mars. The world is big.
Yet experts tell us the world is limited. Space may go on and on, but somewhere out there there’s a limit beyond which we cannot pass. Our world is this world, and we are restricted to this world. Yes, our world is big, but it is just one room. If there is a heaven, or if there is life on another planet, we can’t reach it, can’t find out, for all we see is this world, this closed room. So our society has a ‘closed world view’; we are on our own. That’s what the naked eye sees, and what science can learn.
That is why the vision of John in our chapter is so astounding. John lived in the same world in which we live. But he looked, and behold, an open door, open into heaven! That is: John was shown a second room in this existence, and the door between the rooms stands open! Our house, then, is not limited to this earth and the bit of space man has been able to explore. Reality is much bigger, includes at least a second room – though our naked eye (and science!) cannot see it. In the midst of brokenness, that gives comfort, encouragement, perspective.
I summarize the sermon with this theme:
BETWEEN EARTH AND HEAVEN IS AN OPEN DOOR!
1. What John saw on earth.
The Lord Jesus Christ caused John to see this open door. Why did the Lord show John this door? In what circumstance did John live, that the Lord would seek to encourage him with such a vision?
From Rev 1:9 we learn that John was in exile, banned to lonely island, destitute. John gives the reason for his exile; he was banned on account of persecution. The powers of this world hated the gospel of Jesus Christ, put John the Preacher in chains, and exiled him in an effort to silence the gospel. John’s world, then, had become so very small – a little island in a big sea…. And he was powerless to break out of it….
How different the past had been! John seen Jesus’ works in the course of His three-year ministry, had seen His miracles, His power. The blind received their sight, the lame walked, lepers were cleansed: what power the Lord had! Then yes, He’d been arrested, crucified, broken, dead…. But by the power of God Christ had arisen from the dead, and had displayed again that He was Lord of the universe. John, as the other disciples, had been duly impressed with Jesus’ miracles, how He could enter a room without using the door, how He at a word could fill the net with fish, how He could ascend past the clouds and the stars into heaven. They saw more of His power in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, when flames of fire appeared on the heads of the disciples and they spoke in tongues. John saw the power of the ascended Savior in the enormous growth of the church; by the thousands people turned from sin and came to faith in Jesus Christ. And they showed their faith also; there was such love and togetherness and unity in the early church! All of it together demonstrated that Jesus Christ was Lord indeed! And when Peter and John were arrested and the authorities could not hold them but had to release them, John and those with him sang the triumphant words of Ps 2: "Why did the nations rage, and the people plot vain things? The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ" – and all their frenzied opposition came to nothing! (cf Acts 4:23ff). What a God the Christians had, what glory and power belonged to the Christ!
And then? John’s world, the world of the church, fell apart like a house of cards. Stephen was martyred, and violent persecution broke out against the church…. Yes, the gospel continued to be preached, but the mass converts of the early days no longer occurred. Churches were instituted in throughout Asia Minor, but they’re small…, and beset with strife. Tradition has it that John became minister in Ephesus. Both the book of Acts (20:29f) and Paul’s letter to the Ephesians make plain that the church of Ephesus struggled with weakness, with false teaching, with attacks of the devil (cf Eph 4:25ff; 5:3ff). John himself wrote letters to the churches, where he warned against antichrists (1 Jn 2:18ff), Christians who deny that Jesus is Christ. In fact, from John’s letter it’s clear that the church even split on the issue (vs 19)…. It’s clear: there’s problems, massive problems in the young churches…. And now there’s persecution too yet, and a central leader is muzzled, exiled….
And even that, congregation, is not the full picture. On Patmos John sees a vision –of who?- of Christ Himself. According to Rev 1:10ff this Christ is most majestic; He even walks among the churches! His appearance and His report of the churches should be encouraging. But in reality it’s so very different. In Rev 2 and 3 Christ relates to John His church visitation reports. And what does He say?
1. Concerning the church of Ephesus, He says that the place is doctrinally sound, but lost they’ve lost their first love – vs 4. 1 Cor 13:2 makes clear that even if one has all the gifts of the world, including prophecy and knowledge and faith and you name it, but have not love, you’re but "sounding brass or a clanging cymbal" – useless….
2. Concerning Smyrna Jesus says that difficult days are ahead, for persecution is coming….
3. Pergamos is internally divided. In that congregation is a group known as the Nicolaitans, who want to build a compromise with the world. In this church, then, are those who do not appreciate the enmity between Christ and Satan, who think that light can co-exist with darkness.
4. The church of Thyatira allows Jezebel to belong in their midst…, and so tolerates idolatry in the church.
5. Sardis, Jesus says, is dead.
6. Philadelphia, on the other hand, is good, alive. But, Jesus adds, this church is weak, ineffective in their community. Certainly the powerful works of the early church are not there….
7. And Laodicea is lukewarm, is not excited about the good news of reconciliation with God through the blood of Jesus Christ. The members of this church come faithfully to church, but in their daily lives they carry on doing the done thing…. For that reason Jesus would vomit them out.
How discouraging, brothers and sisters, how thoroughly discouraging such a report was for John himself and the churches as a whole. So much brokenness, so much heresy, so much persecution: what, o what, was left of the power and glory of the Christ? Was Christ’s redeeming work all nothing more than a bubble, a promise proven to be empty? And was Christ’s ascension into heaven then vain also, an empty dream? Had heaven opened to receive the Christ, and then closed again …, to stay closed?? It’s what the naked eye saw: the earth was a closed room, and here we need to survive on our own…. How well we can relate to the sense of despondency that invariably arises from so many things going wrong….
Precisely for that reason, congregation, is the word of our text so encouraging! It’s our second point:
2. What John saw in heaven.
The text begins with the words "after these things". That’s a reference to the church visitation reports of chapters 2 & 3, with all their discouragement. "After these things" John "looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven!" We need to know: the way the verb is written in the Greek indicates that the door was once set open and now stays open! This door did not shut, and will not shut.
John on earth can look through the door, more, he is invited to pass through the door himself. In vs 2 we read that John actually did pass through it. That is: this world is not closed, there are more rooms in the ‘building of life’ than meets the eye. In fact, the other room is the control room. John may travel through the door to see what is in next room, but influence travels from other room through door back to this room. That other room is earth headquarters. I draw your attention to what John sees:
He saw a throne, and we understand: the throne represents authority, government.
On the throne John saw One sitting. That’s obviously a King. This particular King is sitting. He’s not riding out to battle, not working to overcome challenges against his throne, but is seated securely on that throne. The point is that His throne is secure, there are no threats to His dominion. He is King triumphant.
To describe this King, though, is more than John can do. To give a sense of the majesty and grandeur of this King, John has to use comparisons. This king is like jasper, sardius. These are stones, glowing reddish, orange, brown – all colors associated with fire. And fire is a Biblical symbol for the presence of God. That is the point: He who sits on the throne is divine. Yet He’s not threatening, not dangerous to John, for there’s a rainbow around the throne, a reminder that God would never again destroy the earth through a flood but would instead permit day and night, cold and heat, summer and winter to continue; life would remain possible on earth.
To draw out further the majesty and holiness of the One on the throne, John describes His companions, describes what company He keeps. John says that around throne are 24 more thrones with 24 elders seated on them. Commentators dispute who these 24 elders are, whether they are angels or 12 elders from the Old Testament church and 12 from the New Testament church. However that may be, this much is clear: these 24 elders function as God’s cabinet ministers, His advisors. No, not that God needs them. But the point here is to draw out the greatness of this King. And the abundance and quality of one’s advisors certainly says something about a King!
From throne came lightnings, thunderings, and voices. This combination of lightnings, thunderings and voices reminds of Ex 19, that chapter that describes God’s coming to Israel in majesty to make covenant with unworthy people. The vision John sees in the other room of creation is of God, the God who does not change, who keeps His covenant. The same God who established His covenant with Israel long ago remains enthroned in heaven, in full control of all!
John sees seven lamps, which, he says, are the seven Spirits of God. That is: John sees around the throne of God also the Holy Spirit in His fullness. This Spirit is true God, yet dwells in and with His people. That John sees the Holy Spirit in the presence of God speaks of closeness of God with men!
John sees more still. He sees a sea of glass, like crystal in its clarity. The purpose and even identity of this sea of glass is debated. Is it to show the majesty of God’s palace? Or is it to indicate that God looks through a floor of glass to the earth beneath? (cf 4:1b: "up here"). No one seems to know. But given the context it’s clear that for John this reference to the sea of glass again pointed up the majesty of the One who sat on the throne.
That majesty is pointed up too with the reference to the living creatures. The prophet Ezekiel had seen these living creatures also and called them cherubim (Ezek 1, 10). That’s what John sees here: these are cherubim, angels. They are "full of eyes", a reference John repeats in order to make clear that these angels miss nothing. They report to the One of the throne all that happens on earth beneath. These cherubim, these living creatures, are servants of God who serve the elect in the ‘other room’ of God’s creation. The description of their faces points up their positive task. The one has a face like a lion – a symbol in the Old Testament of the Messiah, of the One who has power to redeem. I think of the phrase the "Lion of the tribe of Judah". The second has a face like a calf – a symbol in the Old Testament of Christ’s coming sacrifice for sin on cross. The third has the face of an eagle – a symbol in the Old Testament of God’s protection (cf Ex 19:4; Dt 32:11f). The fourth has the face of a man – a reference to the fact that God’s face shines upon own, cf Num 6:24ff. These four creatures before God’s throne are driven by the gospel of Jesus Christ, driven by the good news God’s grace to sinners on earth.
These living creatures sing ceaselessly: ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!’ The elders on the 24 thrones join them in singing, and what do they say? Says John: the angels and elders together to do cease to sing praises to the One on the throne. Vs 11: "You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power!" Why? "For You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created." We understand: here is a reference to Gen 1! The one who sits on the throne in heaven is the God who God created heaven and earth, ie, created two rooms in His creation. Those two rooms always connected by that open door. He who made the heavens as a home for Himself also made the earth as a home for His children, and from heaven above this Creator governs every event on the earth beneath. All the majesty John saw around and on the throne of heaven draws out how completely heaven above rules over the earth beneath.
That brings us to our last point:
3. What encouragement followed.
On the earth beneath John saw only brokenness, disillusionment. What started so wonderfully in the ministry of Jesus Christ and the outpouring of His Holy Spirit had been reduced to a broken rump; according to the evidence one sees on earth, heaven was obviously closed….
But the vision is emphatic: it is not so! God from heaven on high would impress upon the exile on Patmos that the world is bigger than his island, is bigger than "the earth beneath". There are, says the Lord, two rooms to this existence, and between these two rooms is an open door. In next room is Almighty God, with glorious servants around Him. This God made all things, including the two rooms of creation, heaven and earth. More: not only did He make them, but both rooms continue to exist because of God. That is: earth today continues to exist because God above upholds and preserves.
What is one to say, then, of all the brokenness on the earth beneath? This, brothers and sisters: John may not stare himself blind on that brokenness on earth! In the midst of this brokenness John must feast his eyes on the glory of heaven! For recall: who told him to look into heaven? Who told him to pass through open door? Says John in vs 1: "the first voice which I heard" said to "come up here." Who is that voice? That first voice first spoke in Rev 1:10f, and described Himself as "the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last." This voice is He who is the Beginning and the Purpose of all things, viz, Jesus Christ, He who died and triumphed. On account of Him the door between these two rooms stands open, and on account of Him heaven continues to rule over earth. Christ: His public ministry started with so much enthusiasm, with such enormous success. But it ended in rejection, in crucifixion…. Yet that was not the end, for He arose, He ascended, He poured out His Holy Spirit, He caused thousands to come to faith. Then yes, it may appear to John that the cycle repeats itself, and he’s back at the disappointment of the cross. But the eye of faith saw further, believed that the resurrection would follow the disappointment of the crucifixion. So it is with the history of the church. Initial success may have been so impressive, and all that success collapse like a house of cards…, but the child of God is not to despair. The Creator remains enthroned, and from the other room of this creation He controls all things on earth totally. The victory of Golgotha will yet be manifest on this earth! The rest of the book of Revelation will show more of Jesus’ sovereignty and triumph, but here already is so very much encouragement!
We live on this earth, congregation, and here we look around us. What do we see? We see just this earth, this one room, a closed world…, and so much turmoil, strife – even amongst brethren. What the eye sees is so discouraging…. For that reason the Lord directs us to a reality the naked eye cannot see, directs us to that open door! He would have us know: there’s another room to reality, and He who is seated in that other room controls earth completely. That’s the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Through that open door God Himself will one day come, to earth, with all His holy angels – including the elders and living creatures of Rev 4. On that day, when heaven comes to earth, the two rooms will merge into one, and almighty God will dwell with us! Then no brokenness will be left, no tears, no stress….
Come, Lord Jesus! Come, through that open door! Amen.