“Jesus, Mighty God” (Revelation 5:1-10)

Who Am I?

Have you ever played the “Who Am I?” game? (also called 20 Questions) Now guess who is this person:

•        The Mighty God

•        The Prince of Peace

•        The Light of the World

•        Immanuel

The answer is Jesus. Scriptures are filled with the promises about Jesus, particularly his arrival. Advent (meaning “arrival” or “coming”) is the season of waiting for the coming of Christ. As we expectantly wait for his second coming throughout this Advent, each week we will explore a core aspect of Jesus’ identity drawn from Isaiah’s prophesies. Today’s theme is Jesus as the Mighty God.

Why?

Now can you guess what it is in the picture? It’s really hard to tell. It’s a tapestry, but undiscernible—a confused spattering of twisted, knotted and tangled threads.

Around the time when the Book of Revelation was written, the Early Church Christians were severely persecuted. As they were suffering under Roman oppression, probably they had many questions in their minds: “Do my sufferings have any meaning?”, “Does God have a plan for this?”, “Who can give me a clue to the mystery of suffering?” They might get frustrated and weary. Perhaps they were looking for someone who could give them an answer.

In today’s passage, basically an angel asks the same question, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” John does not tell us what the scroll is, but from the following chapters we know it is the book of history, particularly the sealed record of the unknown future. The scroll is in the right hand of God (v. 1). So we know our history and our future are in God’s hand. They are safely sealed. But, as long as the scroll is sealed, we don’t know what is written inside.

Today some of us in this room may feel the same way – frustrated, confused, tangled, never seem to make sense. We know God holds the future in our heads. But, when we are hard pressed on every side, in our minds we ask the same questions that the early church Christians had, “Why me? Why now? Does God have a plan for this?” No one can seem to answer this question.

Lion of Judah

But, there is good news! The seals are now broken and the scroll is  wide open! Now John hears one of the elders say to him, “Do not weep. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals” (v. 5). So who is the Lion of Judah? Jesus! Then, why do you think the elder calls Jesus a lion? What are the characteristics of a lion? Powerful. Brave. Courageous. Strong. Fearless. Ferocious. So the lion symbolizes in personality: majesty, strength, courage, justice, and military might. The lion is commonly referred to as "the KING of the beasts," it is a symbol of Kingly power and might. Jesus is the King of kings, Lord of lords. Jesus is the mighty God, who has conquered the world.

Lamb of God

So now John looks up to see this triumphant lion, but to his surprise what he sees instead is a Lamb, looking as if it has been slain (v. 6). It is crucial that we recognize the contrast between what John hears (“the Lion”) and what he sees (“the Lamb”). Both images are the “true face of Christ.” Yes! Christ Jesus is indeed the Lion of Judah. He is God Almighty. He is able to save us by his almighty power. He reigns with God and is equally worthy of our praise and worship. But at the same time, Jesus is the Lamb of God. To be precise, the great lion of Judah conquered the world not by his might, but by becoming a lamb. He saved us, not by his almighty power, but by his sacrificial death.

In his book The Chronicles of Narnia, C. S. Lewis describes this paradoxical truth so powerfully. During the Winter Revolution, the White Witch tricked Edmund to betray his siblings by revealing their location to her. According to Narnia’s law Edmond now belonged to her as her lawful prey. When the Witch made a claim on Edmund, Aslan spoke to her, offering himself in Edmund's place. The Witch accepted, and that night near the Stone Table, Aslan went up there alone to sacrifice himself in Edmund's stead. The Witch had all her followers gathered at the Table, to witness the mighty lion, the great King of Narnia's fall and death. It was not enough, though, that he simply die, as she wanted him humiliated, tortured, and shamed. So she had him bound, gagged, beaten, and shaved before being dragged over to the Stone Table, where he was executed by the Witch, using her Stone Knife. But what the Witch didn’t know was the Writing upon The Table, saying, "If a willing Victim that has committed no treachery is killed in a traitor's stead, the Stone Table will crack; and even death itself would turn backwards." – The Deep Magic. At dawn, there was an almighty crack, and the Table split in two right down the middle. And Aslan was once again alive and well.

Leviticus 17:11 says, “It is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.” Hebrews 9:22 says, "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." Jesus, the Lion of Judah, conquered the world by becoming a lamb. Jesus, the Lamb of God, took away the sin of the world, our sin, by shedding his precious blood. Jesus is the Lion and the Lamb.

King’s Crown

Now we clearly see what it is in the picture. The tapestry was a glorious picture of the king’s crown. This insight is actually from Corrie Ten Boom’s own experience. She was imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp along with her father and sister for hiding Jews in their home. Her father and sister both died in the camp. For years, Corrie struggled with why God had allowed this tragedy, especially, why God had allowed a certain woman, prison guard, to be so cruel to her dying sister.

One day Corrie was touring one of the many European castles. There she saw a massive tapestry, mounted and stretched on a wooden frame. But Corrie could only see the underside of the tapestry, not the front. The underside looked all messy, tangled, confused. Then workers in the castle moved the tapestry to its proper place, and Corrie saw its upper side. The tapestry was a glorious picture of mountains, meadows, cathedrals and castles. What a difference, seeing the upper side. Then, Corrie realized that the events of this life are like the tangled, confused dark threads of the tapestry — they never seem to make sense. But, in heaven, we will see the upper side of the tapestry. We will see how God, the weaver, has woven the dark threads of this life into something beautiful. Corrie often said something like this: “If you look at the world, you'll be distressed. If you look within, you'll be depressed. If you look at God you'll be at rest.”

Facing the Red Sea

At first, an angel questioned, “Who is worthy to open the scroll?” No one was able to open the scroll. So John wept bitterly. But later he heard the elder say the Lion of Judah is able, then he himself saw the Lamb that was slain. After this, he joined the company of heaven in singing and praising: “To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” (v. 13).

Today we might be standing on the edge of the Red Sea – confused, weary, afraid. But let us be still, stand firm, and wait expectantly for the coming of Jesus, the mighty God. He will come and save us.

When you are surrounded on every side by troubles,

In front of you is the Red Sea,

Behind you are the Egyptians,

On the one side is a range of craggy rocks,

On the other side are fortresses of Egypt,

Then, begin to praise God and thank him ahead of time,

Because it is time that God will work for you!