REVELATION LESSON 12

    We have completed the study of the seven churches, now we will see
the door of heaven open. Revelation 4:1 "After this I looked, and,
behold, a door [was] opened in heaven: and the first voice which I
heard [was] as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come
up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter."

    The "...I..." in V-1 is John the Revelator.  Jesus has been
speaking in the previous chapter directly.  Now we hear from John
about the things he saw. This is after Jesus finishes His messages to
the seven churches.

    We will see the number "seven" throughout Revelation.  Seven means
"spiritually complete".  Perhaps in this number, God is saying, This
is it. There is nothing else to read.  If you can't get the message in
Revelation, you cannot receive it.

     John takes a look toward heaven and is startled "...behold...".
The door of heaven is open.  Jesus is the door to heaven. The door of
heaven is not closed to the believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus
opened the way to the very throne of God, when the temple curtain was
torn from the top to the bottom (opening the way to the holy of
holies), when He died on the cross, Matthew 27:51.

     The word "...looked..." is important also.  We must seek before
we can find. Jesus is coming back for those who are looking for Him.

     Notice, this door was "...opened..." in the past tense.  It is
not going to be opened. Jesus opened it for us.  It is now open to
believers. Heaven is presently the dwelling place of God.  It will
also be our eternal home.

    There are several other instances in the Bible where the door of
heaven was opened. Many prophets, also, have seen a vision of the
heavenly.

    Ezekiel speaks of his look into heaven.
    Daniel had a glimpse into heaven.
    When Stephen was stoned to death, he saw into heaven.

    When Stephen looked into heaven, he saw Jesus standing at the
right hand of God. Most times Jesus is seated at the right hand
because His work is completed, but I believe that He was standing to
receive His faithful servant, Stephen, home.

    This door has never been closed to the true believers.

    The first voice that John hears in V-1 is either the voice of
Jesus Himself, or the voice of Jesus' own personal messenger.  It
makes no difference, the message itself is from Jesus. When the Lord
calls us to meet Him in the air, when the church is caught away, we
will hear the trumpet; the silver trumpet of redemption. Matthew 24:31
"And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and
they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end
of heaven to the other." I Thessalonians 4:16 "For the Lord himself
shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall
rise first:"

    In both of these, the voice and the trumpet seem to be
interchangeable. The voice of Jesus and His personal angel are a
little confusing, as well. Either way the message is from Jesus.  This
trumpet was talking with John.

    The voice that John heard was like a trumpet.  This is a powerful
voice; it gives a true sound. This voice is talking to us, as well as
John.

    The voice said, "...come up hither..." to John, but is always
saying to us, "...come up hither...". Get your mind off the things of
this world and look heavenward. The call of Jesus has always been
"come". In this specific sentence, He tells John "...come up
hither...". Then adds why.

    Jesus, the voice, says, "...I will shew thee things which must be
hereafter."  John will be shown a look into the future.  John could
have had a vision of this, or he could have been transported into
heaven for a moment in time to see all of this.  We do know that
viewing something from the earth makes us see just the here and now.
From a heavenly point, we can see yesterday and tomorrow.

    Probably, John was transported by the Spirit to heaven.  Notice
here that these things of the hereafter must be.  Why must they be?
Because God ordered it from the beginning of the world.  God never
changes. We must change to fit His plan, not the other way around.
John is not told a specific time in the hereafter, only that it will
be later than the present time he is in.

    Revelation 4:2 "And immediately I was in the spirit; and, behold,
a throne was set in heaven, and [one] sat on the throne."

    John was already in the Spirit we know from a previous lesson, but
this means a deeper experience in the Spirit. A double dose of the
Spirit, you might say.

    John was changed or transported, instantly.

    This throne, as we said before, has been seen by many in the
Bible. The word "...one..."  does not literally mean "one" but, I
believe it means the unity of the trinity.

    God the Father
    God the Son or God the Word
    God the Holy Spirit

    The word "...sat..." is indicative that the work is complete.

    A throne shows rulership and power.  Notice that the
"...throne..." was "...set in heaven..."; set is past tense.  This
throne is occupied even now in heaven, where Jesus sits at the right
hand of the Father.

    Revelation 4:3 "And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and
a sardine stone: and [there was] a rainbow round about the throne, in
sight like unto an emerald."

    The "...jasper and sardine stone..." were the most precious of all
stones. The beauty of God was so dazzling that John could not describe
Him. The jasper was the last and the sardine the first stone in the
breastplate worn by the high priest, Exodus 28:17-20. These stones are
in the foundation of the new Jerusalem, Revelation 21:19-20.

    The diamond and ruby are meant by these stone.  These stones are
known for their clearness and brightness.

    There was a diamond between the breastplate and the heart of the
high priest. The name engraved on this stone, I believe, is the
unspeakable name of God Almighty.  The diamond stone next to the heart
stood for purity and mercy.

    The emerald is another precious stone, green in color.  Green
means "earthly or of the earth".  The emerald was also part of the
breastplate, and of the foundation of new Jerusalem.

    The value of these three different stones is greater than other
stones. These are classified as precious stones and are very
expensive.

    This rainbow is green (earthly) to show the covenant between God
and man. The first rainbow mentioned was a sign of a promise from God
to man. God would never again destroy the earth by water.  Sometimes
it is called a bow, and sometimes a rainbow.  The rainbow encircles
the throne as a constant reminder to God and man of the covenant. This
is a beautiful sight to behold.

    Revelation 4:4 "And round about the throne [were] four and twenty
seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting,
clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold."

    The twenty-four seats were actually thrones.  Miniature thrones in
authority, subordinate to God, but nevertheless they surround the
throne of God.

    Twelve is a spiritual number which has to do with representation.
The number twenty-four, I believe, is two twelves.

    One twelve for the Old Testament
    One twelve for the New Testament

    The twelve prophets represent the believers of the Old Testament.
    The twelve disciples represent all believers from the New
Testament.

    There are many other schools of thought on the twenty-four.

    These Old Testament believers were looking forward to Messiah and
were preached to, when Jesus preached in hell and brought captivity
captive out with Him.

    Notice all twenty-four were dressed in white robes.  White robes
are worn by believers in Jesus, who have washed their robes in the
blood of Jesus and are made white as snow.  All through the Old
Testament people like David were looking for the Saviour. They
believed, even though they were looking forward instead of backward to
Him.

    There are over thirty-seven Old Testament scriptures which mention
the coming of Jesus Christ. These were fulfilled, every one.  It is
not absurd to speak of Old Testament believers.

    These crowns that they had on their heads were gold.  This showed
that they had nothing to do with these crowns being put on their
heads. Gold means the purity of God.  God placed these crowns on their
head. The grace of God placed these crowns on their head. They did
nothing to earn them. It was a free gift from God for believing.
Crowns show rulership, and we believers are promised that we will
reign with Jesus.

    Revelation 4:5 "And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and
thunderings and voices: and [there were] seven lamps of fire burning
before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God."

    The "...lightnings and thunderings..." showed the majesty and
awesomeness of God. Lightning, earthquakes, and thunderings throughout
the Bible have been an outward proclamation of God. Even at the foot
of Mount Sinai the people were afraid of God, because of just such
manifestations.

      The "...seven lamps..." are a symbolic number covering all the
workings of the Spirit of God.

      Fire throughout the Bible has been symbolic of God, as in the
burning bush, Exodus 3:2. In Hebrews 12:28-29, we are told to serve
God with reverence and Godly fear, because God is a consuming fire.

      We do not completely understand God, but we must accept and
trust God. This Spirit of God which is burning is to illuminate the
minds and Spirits of all who will accept it.  Jesus is the Light.
Somehow, all three are present in these lamps (Spirit) that
illuminate.

      "...the seven Spirits..." mean the entirety of the power of the
 Spirit is manifest there at the throne and emanates out to the
 twenty-four or all Christendom. John is seeing into the future, after
 the believers in Christ are raptured into heaven, in this particular
 scene.

      I would like to mention here that Revelation is not written in
chronological order. Just as a dream sometime skips around, so does
this.

      Extra scriptures to study: Ezekiel 1:1, Daniel 12, and Acts 7.

      Memorize 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and Hebrews 12:28-29.













































                      REVELATION QUESTIONS 12


1.  When John looked to heaven, what did he see?
2.  What did the first voice he heard sound like?
3.  What did the voice say to John?  Two things.
4.  What could be one reason for God using "seven" repeatedly in
    Revelation?
5.  What single word shows us that John is startled?
6.  Who is the door to heaven?
7.  When did He open the door to believers?
8.  Who is Jesus coming back for?
9.  Where is the present dwelling place of God?
10. Who saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God?
11. Why is Jesus generally seated at the right hand of God?
12. Name two instances where the voice of Jesus and the trumpet mean
    the same thing.
13. Why did Jesus tell John to come up?
14. Do you believe John was transported to heaven, or do you believe
    it was just a vision?
15. When was this all to happen?
16. When John got even deeper in the Spirit, what did he see in
    heaven?
17. What two things does this throne symbolize?
18. The one who sat on the throne was like what two stones?
19. What was round about the throne?
20. What color was it?
21. What other places will we find all three of these stones?
22. What name does the author believe is engraved on the diamond
    behind the breastplate?
23. What does the rainbow remind us of?
24. What does green mean?
25. How many seats were around the throne?
26. Who sat upon them?
27. What was on their heads?
28. Why was it made of gold?
29. What is the number twelve symbolically?
30. This twenty-four is actually what?
31. What were they dressed in?  Why?
32. Crowns indicate what?
33. What three things proceeded from the throne and what do they show?
34. What were burning before the throne?
35. What is fire symbolic of?
36. What order is Revelation written in?
37. Write 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and Hebrews 12:28-29.
38. What do you think heaven is like?