Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.” (Revelation 4:9-11)

He Is Worthy

The Revelation of John is a splendid pictorial testimony to the grandeur and magnificence of the Lord God who made all things and through whom all things exist. There is great debate about the meanings of the images in the book to the point the grand scheme of the revelation is obscured in confusion. The early saints faced an onslaught of persecution from government, religion and the carnal world. God assures those who cried out for mercy that victory was theirs and Jesus Christ was King of Kings and Lord of Lords. No world power could dominate the spirit of the courageous soldiers of the cross. False religion would seek to apostate the faith of the people of the Lord, but God’s kingdom would never be shaken. Immorality filled the hearts of the world. The beacon of righteousness overcame the desires of the flesh for those who committed themselves to the worship of the one true God.

Images emerge at the beginning of the revelation that set the scene for the message. The throne room of Heaven is filled with wonderous pictures of precious stones, fires, lightnings, thundering’s and voices. There was a sea of glass and four fearsome creatures. Surrounding the throne of God, twenty-four elders sat on thrones. Everyone before the throne worshiped Him who was on the throne. They declared He was worthy and deserving of eternal praise and honor. Showing servitude to the Lord God, the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him, laying their crowns before His throne. In their song of praise, the twenty-four elders recognized God as supreme for two reasons. First, God created all things. Second, everything exists because of Him.

There is a fundamental truth that every man must believe in order to be saved. God created everything by His hand, through His power, and according to His purpose. This goes beyond Genesis 1:1 and the scientific analysis of creation. The twenty-four elders gave glory to God because He is supreme above all men, His power is absolute, and His will is the highest law known to man. Many despots have tried to rule the world and attain absolute power over men but all failed. Empires have been wrought from the vengeance of war only to end in total destruction. The irony of global conquest is the futility of it all. God made the world and He deserves honor and glory because it came into being because He willed.

Moses said that God spoke and the world was formed. What power is there greater than the One who speaks and the firmament divides, the land and sea separate, grass and trees abound from the earth and the skies and oceans fill with animals? Only the one who created all things deserves such honor. The sun, moon, and the innumerable stars came into existence by the word of God. How can the sun, 864,000 miles in diameter and emitting heat of 5,778 Kelvin (10,000 Fahrenheit), immediately appear by the word of God? Standing before the One who spoke the sun into existence will bring every man to his knees and beyond.

Not only did God create the world and the universe, everything exists by the power of the One who sits on the throne. The sun that warms the day today is the same (think about this) sun that Adam and Eve first saw in the Garden of Eden. Abraham traveled under the moon that graces the night today. The early Biblical writers saw the constellations of the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades and the chambers of the south. They remain in place just as Job saw them thousands of years ago. The world exists by the power of God. Everything continues because of God. The breath of life comes from God. A new birth is the same way that Adam and Eve saw the birth of Cain. Each day the sun rises and sets and life continues on its endless flow because God spoke and the world exists.

God deserves glory and honor because He has provided every need of man. Greater than the physical world that declares His glory, God provided His only begotten Son to save man from the consequence of sin and the fear of death. Standing before the throne of God, the elders see the lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world, taking the scroll and opening the seals. Jesus was worthy to take the scroll, for He was slain. God created the way to eternal life and salvation because of His love and power. Praise God for what He has done. All men will honor God one day as every knee will bow before His throne. Sadly, most men will not enjoy the glory of God because they did not submit to His will. God made the world and it exists because of Him. He provides a way of escaping the penalty of sin. The choice is yours. Give glory to God by obeying His word.