Worshiping God

Revelation 1:4-8

What is your favorite book of the Bible? What is your least favorite book? Which book would you say is the hardest to understand?

When most pastors ask the members of their congregations, none of them would say that Revelation is their favorite book of the Bible, some of them would say that it is their least favorite and many, along with Daniel or Ezekiel will say that Revelation is one of the hardest books to understand.

Generally, the book of Revelation is the least understood book of the entire Bible. Since this book more any else is full of metaphor and imagery that captivates our imaginations and seems to defy an simple or plain reading of the text it becomes difficult outside of its’ original context to nail down the meanings of all the imagery used in the book. Over the centuries, much ink and many words have been spoken and spilled out over this book.

Although it is, probably, among the least read books, that does not mean that in some way it manages to captivate our imagination and peaks our curiosity, when someone comes to us saying they have the answers to unlocking its mysteries. There are several theories of how to interpret this book, each one more complex that the last. Each one has its own way of understanding and de-codifying the various forms of imagery found in the book. During the course of my lifetime, it seems that the most complicated, and dark interpretations have been the most popular.

I can remember being frightened, as a young teen, watching “The Thief in the Night” films, and then later anticipating the destruction of the Earth as I read Hal Lindsey’s “The Late Great Planet Earth” and the others that followed.  I can remember my much more jaded approach to Tim Laheye’s “Left Behind” series. I did not even bother watching the movie, starring Kirk Cameron. And I have to admit if anything on this subject has captivated the imagination popular Christianity since then, I have remained completely unaware of its existence.

The book of Revelation actually begins like many other books.  From John to the seven Churches in Asia (which is currently where the modern nation of Turkey is located). This, like so many other writings of the New Testament, is a letter, a letter from a pastor to several of the Churches in his care. This was a pastor offering instruction, guidance, encouragement and teaching to his parishioners. The message this book contained was a message that was accessible to the people in his churches.  It was not a message they could not grasp or understand, that would render the letter worthless. John wrote this letter to his people and it contained a message, which was meaningful to them in their time, and in their context.  All though the book may contain some elements of foretelling, giving them a picture of a world that had not yet come, the message of the book, was not to give them a road map to some future they could not, and would not ever see, but the message of the book was something that had meaning to them in their day to day struggles as Christians in their particular time and place.  Understanding the heart of John’s message to his people is probably the most valuable message we can gain, as Christians who are also struggling to live our day-to-day lives today.

This letter was understandable to the normal people in seven normal congregations. It was originally addressed to the seven churches along the great circular road that made its way through Asia.  It would have been understood that each church would receive the letter, read it and then pass it on to the next one down the road. From there it was passed on to other churches in John’s care and eventually after it had made its way through all of John’s congregations, it was then passed on to other churches in making its way through all the churches the ancient world.  And over time, it was eventually considered to be a part of the Biblical canon, being read in churches alongside the various letters of Paul and the gospel writings.  And now, across the centuries, it has now come to our church.

John may not be our pastor, but John wrote to churches not all that dissimilar to ours.  He wrote to churches who were struggling with who they were. They were living in a society that did not understand them.  They were living under government, which did not always have their best interests at heart.  They were struggling to understand their place in their world and their society, which did not always understand them or welcome them. The world around them did not value the same things they did, and it was hard to live peaceably while still upholding their values.  In many cases, the cultural norm was directly contrary to their faith.  What seemed to be the most intuitive way to move, work, act and think because of the world in which they lived, often times went directly against their faith and the ways in which Jesus instructed them.  They were struggling with their identity as Christians in their world, in their culture and in their society. What does it mean to be a Christian in this time and place? What does it mean to be the Church in a society whose values are so very different from our own? Their struggle and the questions they were asking themselves are really not all that different from our own.

The book is often called the Revelation of John, or the Apocalypse of John, which are just the first three words of the book. The book of John is considered to be a particular form of Biblical writing, which is in the same category of Biblical writings as Daniel and Ezekiel and a handful of others, called Apocalyptic Literature. Which sounds somewhat scary and perhaps a little too much like the un-relatable nonsense you would hear when you get a bunch of Bible Scholars and theologians together for afternoon tea, 'Oh the exegesis of apocalyptic literature in light of a soteriological understanding of the eschaton.’ 

In truth the word Apocalypse in the original language, does not mean anything high-headed or scary at all. At its root, it means, “to uncover”, which is a very similar idea as “to reveal,” which brings us to the common name of the book, Revelation. But perhaps the idea of “uncovering” something is a little more relatable than “revelation” simply because the name of the book is so loaded.

I want you to imagine with me for a moment. You have come into a house out of the chill of a winter evening. The house is warm and inviting. As you enter, you can hear the casual chatter of friends and family, which indicates to you that you are not the only one who has been invited to dinner.  A small child runs up to you, arms and legs wrapped around one of yours.  You lift the child up, and spin around, feet spread out into the air.  You come to a stop just before you become dizzy, giggles erupt all around before you place the child on the ground, feet are barely on the ground before they scurry off.  You stand and notice the house is full of a warm inviting smell.  You make your way across the living room and into the kitchen.  The moist aroma is coming from a pot on the stove.  You can hear the rattle of the pot lid as steam escapes filling the room with the fragrance of what is held within.  You catch the scent of garlic, and basil, maybe the sweetness of carrots but with lid on top, you can only guess at the contents.  You get a nod as you wordless ask if you can peak inside, your uncover the stew, revealing what is held inside, there is a bay leaf floating around, carrots potatoes and onions.  You are handed a tasting spoon and encouraged to try some, now the fullness of the soup, its flavors and contents are revealed to you.  What was once hidden and only guessed at is now uncovered you can see clearly now. This is apocalypse, this is revelation. It is not about hidden secrets that can only be guessed at and implied, it is about revelation, it is uncovering what was previously unknown or only hinted at.  It is knowing the truth, it is a message given, a message heard and received.

As I have worked through the book of Revelation in preparation for this sermon series, I have become aware in a way I had not realized before, how, like the stew pot metaphor I gave just now, John through the written word works to engage ALL the senses through his writing.  John begins by not only addressing those who will read this book but also those who hear it.  As with most letter and books at this time, they were read aloud to the congregations (much as we read scripture each week here).  The book itself is something that should be heard.  As much as it is important to read and study scripture, to gain understanding and insight, this book was first meant to be read and to be heard. The words are written to be heard, the imagery, metaphor and allegory of the book are best understood when heard.

The book engages our sense of touch throughout by numbering everything.  Numbering thing is ultimately a tactile thing, whether it is simply counting things on our fingers, or actually handling the objects we that are numbered.  The book is full of 3s, 4s, 7s and 6s. The churches are number, the angels are numbered, and the people are numbered. And when there are not just numbers to count, there are multitudes and myriads.  Rooms full of people, jostling about; bumping into each other, the idea of crowd in itself is a very tactile thing.

 Our world smells.  Every moment of our lives is scented, everything we do and everywhere we go, we are breathing in our environment.  In addition, in fact a scent can bring back a long lost or forgotten memory better and more powerfully than anything else.   The book like our life is also full of smells.  The most obvious example in the book is the bowls of incense, which encourages reaches into the least thought of and most permeating of all our senses. The fragrance of incense wafts through the heavenly sanctuary and fills the book. Each time the hearer finds herself in the Heavenly sanctuary we are to imagine the room filled with the fragrance of incense filling the room an indeed all of Heaven itself. 

A more subtle way the scent of incense is found, which would have been picked up on by the original readers but not so much by evangelicals in this day and age, is that in the mind of early Christian’s prayer was thought of like incense.  Prayers wafted up, like the smoke trails of incense and found their way to the ear of God by riding the air currents to the Heavenly sanctuary where God was enthroned.  Since prayer was so closely linked in their minds and their imaginations with the image and scent of incense, each time there is a prayer in this book that prayer carries with it the memory of incense.

As I have mentioned before, this book more than any other, involves imagery.  John created a world that can been seen.  Everything is described in vivid detail.  The words capture our imagination and calls for us to not simply hear what is being read to us but to also see what is happening.

Lastly, the book is filled with words that speak of taste.  There is the tepid congregation, which is spewed out of the mouth.  There is a potent mixed drink of the judgement.  And also the marriage supper of the Lamb.  The book draws engages our taste buds whenever it can.

For the early Christians worship was something that engaged all five senses, scripture was heard, incense was burned, the bread and wine were felt with one’s hands and tasted.  Worship was a full-bodied experience so that worship could be an offering of our entire selves. But why does the book work to engage our senses at all?  Why is this important?  Well the book wants to place all the activity all the imagery all the movement and all that is occurs smack dab in the middle of a sacramental worship service. 

The book begins by inviting us to see the Trinity.  Worship revolves around God and our worship begins by remembering that God is Triune.  Once John has finished his introductions, he launches right into a world in which the Triune God is at its center.  John begins by offering grace and peace to us on behalf of all three persons of the Trinity. First, “the one who s and was and is to come,” that is God the Father. And then also from the seven-spirits around the throne.  Although, it seems odd to us, John’s readers would have immediately known that the seven-spirits was not seven actual spirits, but was a common way of speaking of the Holy Spirit.  The number seven was the number of completeness, wholeness and perfection.  The seven-spirits was the perfect Holy Spirit who is whole, complete in all things. And lastly it is offered by Jesus Christ himself.

We are reminded who exactly Jesus Christ is.  He sums up Jesus’ life, death, resurrection and ultimate purpose in the next few phrases. It is Jesus Christ who bears witness and also the first born of the dead.  Jesus, as we discussed last week, himself is our hope.  We know that because Christ was raised from the dead, and is the first fruits of what is to come, we know that someday we too will join Jesus, in the Heavenly sanctuary and join in the ultimate worship service. Not only Jesus is our hope for the life to come, but Jesus is also the one who will return.  He is the one who loves us, frees us and made us. He is the one who allows us to live in relationship with God. John reminds us that he left into the clouds and will once again return into the clouds.  But not like he left, which was only seen by a few, who so happened to be in at the time and place it happened, but his return will not be a quiet, private affair. All the world will see and know of his return.  It will be something that will be seen and known the world over.

And the Triune God speaks, “I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”  I am God. Although John begins his letter as almost every other letter is begun, with a greeting from himself to the churches to whom he was writing, John’s introduction takes a dramatic turn.  We are not merely greeted by John, but we are greeted by God, Almighty. John is a prophet like none other and like none other; he has his own way of saying, “This is the word of the Lord,” which is the typical way the prophets of old began.  Instead, John, who wants us to fill our senses with his words, begins his book by letting us HEAR the words of the Lord, “I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”  It is none other than God who is speaking to and the message we are about to hear is not only the message of John, but it is the message of God to us.

Through the book of Revelation God is calling out to us, inviting us into the great sanctuary of Heaven, beckoning us to join in eternal worship before the throne of God. Before we begin to understand who we are in relation to our world, and our culture we must first understand what it is we are called to.  We are called to gather and worship the One who is, and was and is to come.  We are called to hear the word of the Almighty.  Let us first and foremost remember who we are in relation to our God.

We are loved, we are freed, we are made - remade to be the people we were created to be – in Christ, through Christ and by Christ so that we can come together to worship God and God alone.