Taking a hike in the mountains of Arizona this morning I looked out into the massive burnt orange layered rocks landscape and meditated on the following passage:
And they *sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
Revelation 5:9-10
Context
The problem was God had a sealed book in His right hand which nobody could open. This book contains the will of God and His future doings on all humanity. Therefore an angel started to shout: “Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?” John, writer of the book of Revelation, began to weep because there was nobody truly worthy enough to open this book.
But an elder came to him and said: “Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals.” This gives us the context of our passage. The reason why they are singing a “new song” is clear. The Lamb has overcome! He can open the scroll. He can execute the will of God upon creation! Praise to the Lamb!
Let’s take a closer look at this “new song”.
Worthy
It begins with worship towards the slain Lamb for being “worthy”. You see, the original question from the angel was if anyone was worthy to open the book. The good news is that only this slain Lamb is worthy. Therefore, it is only right if the song begins by pointing out how this Lamb is worthy to open the book. I am not worthy, you are not worthy, nobody could possibly be worthy enough to take a book out of the hand of God and receive equivalent worship with the creator of the universe (Rev 5:13).
The question I have is: “Why is this Lamb so worthy?” The song answers this. The Lamb was
Slain
The song clearly says that the Lamb is worthy: “for [the Lamb] was slain…” What makes this Lamb worthy is because it was a perfect sacrifice. Ever since the fall of man in Genesis 3, mankind has been making sacrifices. The only problem is that these sacrifices fall short (Hos 6:6) because mankind falls short (Rom 3:23). The whole point of the Old Testament is to leave the reader expecting a sacrifice that fulfills all requirements and redeems mankind. This Lamb is the answer. The crazy thing is, the Lamb did not offer a sacrifice outside of itself: it was the sacrifice (Heb 7:27). This is what makes the Lamb so worthy. Worthy of not just our song and worship. But worthy, also, of our time, money, knowledge, talent, desires, etc. He is worthy of it all!
I still have another question, however, which is: “What exactly does this sacrifice do?”
Blood Purchase
In the Old Testament, when animals were slain as a sacrifice to God there were various things this stood for. Peace offering, thanksgiving offering, sacrifice for sins, etc. The point of the Lamb’s sacrifice is that it fulfills all these. However the song marks out one particular purpose: “You purchased people for God with Your blood…”
God’s eternal plan was to create for Himself “many sons to glory” (Heb 2:10). The way He eternally planned to do this was in and through His only begotten Son: The Lamb. This is also the only way to be a son to glory. You can’t become a son of God through works, merit, tricks, sayings, etc. Only through the blood of the slain Lamb can people become “people of God.” This is what the sacrifice accomplished. In short, God’s eternal plan. It finds all its glory, its majesty, its power, in the sacrifice of the Lamb.
Every Tribe
This section is short but definitely important. For those who think there needs to be any external qualification to becoming a “people of God”. Any skin color, voice, ethnicity, etc. Absolutely not. The song goes on to say: “from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” Clearly identifying those who can become a people of God: anyone.
My final question and then I am done: “What exactly does a “people of God” do?
Kingdom and Priests created to Reign
You may wonder or seek after purpose. Asking: What exactly am I called to do? Or to be? (You can read more about that in my earlier post here.) But for now, leave that one up to God. He is the potter to your clay. The song says: “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
Jesus is creating us into something. Your walk of sanctification isn’t only for the purpose of becoming holy. It is to be something God has always called you to be. Which is: a priest to God. Making up the kingdom of heaven. Reigning upon the earth. Don’t get all weird when I say the word “priest” either. I don’t mean we are going to be dressed up as Aaron was with blood on our ear, finger, and toe. (Ex 29:20) A really good video on this idea of priesthood was made by the BibleProject which you can watch here. In short, God created humans to “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (Gen 1:28) To walk upon this earth reigning as the image bearers of God. We messed that up in Genesis 3 in effort to do the above command on our own sourcing. However, a part of God’s eternal plan was to create a people of God who would perfectly fulfill this command. Once again, this plan’s culmination finds itself in the slain Lamb.
And by the way, I haven’t spoiled it yet but this “Lamb” is Jesus…
Jesus is worthy because He died as a sacrifice to create for God a people from everywhere on earth to be the Kingdom of Heaven and to reign as true image bearers of God on earth. You want even better news than that? This is all made possible because He is alive!
Response
- Praise God for His eternal plan of calling you to become a son of God for His glory.
- Confess the times you have let this go from your mind and sought to live out your own plan and live in your own image.
- Ask God to give you more wisdom and revelation of the Lamb and His eternal plan for you in Him.