Notes of Faith September 8, 2025
The Vision of His Glory
Have you ever wanted to ask Abraham, “Was it worth it to leave Ur of the Chaldees, wander around Canaan, live in a tent, and in the end have nothing more to show for it than basically one son, the cave of Machpelah, and the still unfulfilled promises of God?”1
Have you ever wanted to ask Moses, “Was it worth it to give up the pleasures and treasures of Egypt to lead a million or more former slaves through the wilderness for forty years and never even get into the promised land yourself?”2
Have you ever wanted to ask Jeremiah, “Was it worth it to preach over sixty years and never have even one positive response to your message?”3
Have you ever wanted to ask Daniel, “Was it worth it to pray three times a day and wind up in the lions’ den?”4
Have you ever wanted to ask Isaiah, “Was it worth it to volunteer for service to God, saying ‘Here am I, send me,’ when, as a result of that service, you were sawed in two?”5
Have you ever wanted to ask John the Baptist, “Was it worth it to speak the truth to Herod’s face and lose your head?”6
Have you ever wanted to ask Mary, “Was it worth it to say, ‘Be it unto me according to Your will,’ when that submission resulted in a Son who was crucified on a Roman cross?”7
Have you ever wanted to ask Peter, “Was it worth it to open the door for the gospel to be preached to the Gentiles, only to be crucified upside down?”8
Have you ever wanted to ask John, “Was it worth it to preach the gospel and plant churches all over the known world, and in the end, wind up in exile on Patmos?”9
Have you ever asked yourself, “Is it worth it to live a life of faith in God when no one else is? Is it worth it to me?”
Is it worth it to get up on Sunday morning, go to Sunday school and church, when you were out late Saturday night?
Is it worth it every morning to get up thirty minutes earlier than your schedule requires in order to pray and read your Bible when you really want to sleep to the last minute?
Is it worth it to share the gospel with your friend and, as a result, lose the friendship?
Is it worth it to fill out your income tax statement honestly, and pay more taxes?
Is it worth it to tell the truth, when lying would get you a promotion or a salary increase?
Is it worth it to get involved with the homeless, the hopeless, the helpless in Jesus’ name and for His sake, and risk hostility and rejection?
Is it worth it to deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Christ, when no one else in your church seems to take his or her faith that seriously?
Is it worth it to live your life in obedience to God’s Word, surrendered to God’s will, walking in God’s way, when the entire world seems to be going in the opposite direction?
Is it worth it to live a godly life and become a member of the minority? Is it worth it?
My personal answer to all of the above is a resounding, unhesitating “yes, yes, yes! It’s worth it!” Living a godly Christian life is worth whatever it costs — a thousand times over! Why?
Because He is worth it!
The vision of His glory in Revelation 5 describes the “worth-it-ness,” or the worthiness, of Jesus Christ and gives thrilling hope to those who are discouraged by the minority of the godly. Our hope is in who Jesus is!
Jesus is worth it!
Finding Hope in the Unequaled Position of Jesus Christ
Following his “guided tour” of the Lord’s court, John continued to gaze through the open door of Heaven. He “saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals” (Revelation 5:1). Although no one can be certain, it seems reasonable to assume from the context that the scroll represents the deed to planet Earth, and it was in the grip of God the Father. Whoever possessed the scroll had the authority, in God’s eyes, to proceed to rule the world, as well as the ability to fulfill God’s purpose for the human race.
And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?’. — Revelation 5:2
In other words, “Who has the right, in God’s eyes, to rule the world? Who is able to fulfill God’s purpose for the human race! Who is worthy?”
We can think of many people who have been willing. Alexander the Great would have been willing. The Roman emperor Nero would have been willing. King George III of England would have been willing. Hitler would have been willing. The Ayatollahs of Iran would be willing. Vladimir Putin would be willing. I expect the presidents of the United States and China would be willing!
But that wasn’t the question! The question was, “Who is worthy?” Who is worthy to rule the world and complete God’s purpose for the human race?
The answer is a stunning revelation of the failure of the human race:
But no one in Heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. — Revelation 5:3
The entire universe — every planet, every galaxy, every generation, every race — was carefully searched for one person who was worthy in God’s eyes. But no one was found.
Not Enoch, who had walked so closely with God that one day he walked right into Heaven.10
Not Abraham, whom God called His friend.11
Not Sarah, who by faith conceived and bore a child when she was ninety years of age.12
Not Moses, the meekest man in all the earth.13
Not Samson, the strongest man in all the world.14
Not David, the man after God’s own heart.15
Not Solomon, the wisest man in all the world.16
Not Elijah, who didn’t see death but instead was caught up to Heaven in a chariot of fire.17
Not Jeremiah, who was compared to Jesus by those who knew Jesus.18
Not Isaiah, the greatest of the Old Testament prophets.19
Not John the Baptist, whom Jesus said was as great as any man ever born.20
Not Mary, the mother of Jesus.21
Not Peter, who led three thousand people in one day to respond to the gospel he presented and who opened the door for the gospel to be preached to the Gentiles.22
Not Paul, the greatest evangelist of all time who was the human author for most of the New Testament.
Not even John, who was recording this vision!
Not one of the millions of sons of Adam and daughters of Eve was found to be worthy to open the scroll or even look inside!
John was distraught. He wrote,
I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. — Revelation 5:4
The old apostle stood there and sobbed in utter despair and hopelessness! The godly were not just a minority; it seemed the truly godly were nonexistent!
Did this mean that the “curse” of God on the human race and planet earth would never be lifted?23
. . . that paradise was lost forever?
. . . that the cross was impotent to save mankind from God’s wrath?
. . . that there was no atonement for man’s sin?
. . . that in the end, evil would win out over good, hate would win out over love, and death would win out over life?
. . . that Satan would have the ultimate victory?
. . . that Jesus Christ, and the minority who placed their faith in Him, would go down in eternal defeat?
Who can blame John for weeping! Surely horror gripped his soul, hopelessness gripped his heart, and helplessness gripped his mind! He must have sobbed and sobbed with shame for the failure of the entire human race to be what God had originally intended it to be!
If you have ever felt like a failure, you have generations of company! Surely John was also sobbing with shame for his own failure to be what God had originally intended him to be!
As the old apostle stood there with tears streaming down his lined, weather-beaten face and running into his long, gray beard, one of the elders24 got up from his throne and went over to where John was standing.
As he wiped the tears from John’s face, he said gently,
Do not weep! — Revelation 5:5a
And then, in a voice that must have pulsated with the passionate anticipation of victory, he announced,
See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals. — Revelation 5:5b
In other words, “John, there is one Man who is able! There is one Man in all of the universe who is worthy in God’s eyes to rule the world and fulfill God’s purpose for the human race! Only One! One Man who is unequaled in His position!”
And certainly, if this Man is unequaled in His position as Lord of the universe, if He is well-qualified and worthy to rule the world — and He is! — then He is able also to rule your life and mine. Why is it we settle for an unworthy lord? We allow ourselves to be ruled by our emotions or the opinions of others or our business or our appetites or our comfort and convenience or our career or our bank account or the goals we have set and the plans we have made for the future. Every day we hear stories of those who, when it’s too late, make the tragic discovery that the lord they served was unable to rule rightly. Their lives end in broken dreams and broken hearts and broken hopes.
John said the entire universe was searched for someone who was worthy and able in God’s eyes to rule the world and fulfill God’s purpose for the human race. And only one Man was found. Why do you and I look for another? And if God says this one Man is able to fulfill His purpose for the entire human race, He can work out to completion God’s purpose in the details of your life.
This same Man who alone is worthy in God’s eyes to occupy the unequaled position of Lord and King of the universe is revealed also to be undisputed in power.
His name is Jesus!
1. See Genesis 12; Hebrews 11:8–13.
2. See Deuteronomy 34:1–4; Hebrews 11:24–27.
3. See Jeremiah 37:2, 44:16.
4. See Daniel 6.
5. See Isaiah 6; Hebrews 11:37. Jewish history indicates Isaiah was one of the prophets described in Hebrews 11:37 as being sawn in two.
6. See Matthew 14:1–12.
7. See Luke 1:38; John 19:25.
8. See Acts 10. Church history records that Peter was crucified upside down.
9. See Revelation 1:9.
10. See Genesis 5:24.
11. See Isaiah 41:8.
12. See Genesis 17:17; 21:1–2.
13. See Numbers 12:3.
14. See Judges 13–16.
15. See 1 Samuel 13:14.
16. See 2 Chronicles 1:7–12.
17. See 2 Kings 2:11.
18. See Matthew. 16:14.
19. Both Jewish and Christian scholars consider Isaiah to be the greatest of the Old Testament prophets.
20. See Matthew 11:11.
21. See Luke 2:4–7.
22. See Acts 2 and 10.
23. See Genesis 3:16–19.
24. As we discussed in chapter 5, there is some debate as to whether these elders were angels or representatives of redeemed men and women. The more obvious fact is that they were kings who served the King of kings!
25. See Leviticus 4:27, 32–35.
26. See Hebrews 10:3–5.
27. See Ephesians 1:7.
28. See Romans 3:25, 1 John 2:2; 4:10.
Excerpted with permission from The Vision of His Glory by Anne Graham Lotz, copyright Anne Graham Lotz.
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Excerpted from The Vision of His Glory by Anne Graham Lotz, copyright Anne Graham Lotz.
This life is but a vapor. And the first vision of the glory of God will remove all thought of hurt, pain and suffering bringing joy and praise from our inner most being to praise God for all eternity. May we give Him glory and honor for telling us beforehand the things that are to come…
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
Pastor Dale
