Have you ever sat and imagined what it will be like when we get to Heaven? In Revelation chapter 4, we have a description of what John saw. The first thing he sees is a door that has been opened, and then he hears a loud, thundering voice, like a trumpet. Then he was summoned to come and be shown things to come.
John’s first look reveals a door. This verse reminds me that Jesus is the door in John 10:9 “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” He is the door by which we must enter Heaven. Without entering into a relationship with The Door, we cannot enter the door in Revelation 4:1.
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.”
In Revelation 3:20, Jesus extends an invitation to come to Him. If we open the door, we can have a relationship with Him. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Those who open the door will be granted to sit with Him. Because He was willing to give His life as payment for our sins, the Father honored Him. When Jesus obeyed the Father, He proved He had victory over sin, death, the world, and the power of Satan. He was rewarded and is exalted to the throne of the universe. As a reward for His humiliation and obedience in Philippians 2:8-9, “and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:” As redeemed people, we will share in honors of Heaven if we will remain faithful and overcome the sinful flesh.
Revelation 3:21 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”
When we walk through the door of Heaven, the first thing I want to see is Jesus. The one who made it possible for me to be able to behold such a place. When John is given the invitation to come, he notes in Revelation 4:2 that he was “immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.” In verse 3, his description of God is beautiful and magnificent. His appearance is brilliant like beautiful stones of jasper, sardine, and emerald. Jasper and sardine are usually deep, beautiful reds, and within the jasper can be brilliant hues of yellow. Deep red would signify royalty, but my first thought when I see these colors on the throne is red representing the blood that covers our sins, and the yellow reminds me of the sun whose rays are so intense we cannot look directly into it. The Son of God is so pure that He would give off this beautiful, indescribable beauty. Around the throne was a rainbow. In Genesis 9:16, God gives us a rainbow as a sign that He will never again destroy the entire earth with a flood. A rainbow around the throne is like a giant reminder of God’s promise. “And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.”
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.”
As John looks at this scene, there are 24 elders robed in white with golden crowns. Most scholars believe these represent the Old and New Testament saints.
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.”
John describes the area before the throne as a sea of glass, so clear that it looks like crystal. He goes on to tell us of the beasts that are around the throne. He describes the scene of these creatures and of the 24 elders, and while the sounds and sights are magnificent, they are there for one reason. Everything in the scene is about worshiping God. Around the throne, we will have no agenda of our own. It is not a place where we will try to figure out what we will do next. Heaven is not about us; it is about God! We can read what John was inspired to write, but it cannot fully express what it will be like as we cry out with others and the angels, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.” He alone is worthy to be praised. Worthy is the Lamb who made this glorious day possible for us to experience, as we cast our crowns at His feet and begin eternity with Him.
Revelation 4:8-11 “And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. And when those beasts give glory and honor and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who lives for ever and ever, The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that lives for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”
