Roche Coleman Ministries: The Infusion Broadcast

Dr. Roche Coleman: I'm just giving him the glory that he deserves because my God is worthy of it. I'm not going to wait till I get to heaven to give him praise. I'm going to do it right now. This is my dress rehearsal right here in time to get ready for eternity.

You and I have to learn how to praise him. We have to give him glory. Take a lesson from the 24 elders, take a lesson from the living creatures. Give God the glory. Give him the praise and worship him right now. Our God is worthy. Nobody like our God, and we have to magnify him.

Saints of God, it's time we do it now because God has been gracious, compassionate, and kind, forgiving, and long-suffering for us. Many of us know it. This week alone, we've violated eight of the Ten Commandments. This week alone. But God has granted us grace. Therefore, we say, God, thank you. We praise you. We love you, Lord. We are delighted that you're merciful and you are the God of the second chance. Let's give the Lord a handclap of praise.

Guest (Male): Thank you for joining us on this Infusion broadcast with Roche Coleman Ministries. We're excited about this series on heaven based on the Book of Revelation, and Dr. Coleman provides clarity and insights through some of the hard-to-understand passages. Before we begin today's lesson, Dr. Coleman would like to share a request with you, our listener.

Dr. Roche Coleman: Hi, this is Pastor Roche Coleman. Friends, I want to take this opportunity to wish you God's peace and joy through this Christmas season. I want to sincerely thank you for standing with us through your prayers and financial support for our ministry this year. As you know, our mission here at Roche Coleman Ministries is to provide biblical teaching with practical application. We aim to provide you with a strong foundation for your faith and strengthen you for your journey through life.

As you know, our passion is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ so that many will realize the depths of God's love and experience his saving grace. I am coming to you today with a very special request. In order to close our books in the black by the year-end, we are needing to raise $300,000 to cover our operational and airtime costs.

May I kindly request you to prayerfully consider making a one-time year-end donation to help us achieve our goal? I really need your support at this time. To make a contribution, please log on to rochecolemanministries.org, or you can mail a check to Roche Coleman Ministries, 594 Sawdust Road, Suite 185, The Woodlands, Texas 77380. All gifts are tax-deductible. Thank you for your generous support. God bless you.

Guest (Male): We appreciate your support very much. Thank you. Let's go to today's lesson now in our series titled Heaven. Here's Dr. Coleman with part two of the message: The Magnificence of Heaven.

Dr. Roche Coleman: God has prescribed for us as believers if we want to be rewarded and receive the crown, if we want him to acknowledge us as being obedient children of God, we have to compete according to the rules. We have to stay in our lane and no clobbering anybody coming up to overtake what we perceive may be an advantage, and we have to remain in our lane. John is giving us this here. He says these elders, they are on those thrones because they have competed well. What God does is he rewards them for their faithfulness and for their obedience. I love that, but he gives us further imagery of this throne.

Watch this in verse five, because in verse five, he goes a little further and he sees more. After he has given us the minerals, the elements that are there, after he's told us about the one sitting on the throne, after he's told us about these 24 elders around the throne sitting on the throne in white garments. I'm certain those white garments also are representative of none other than their purity, that they are no longer wearing garbs that have been tainted by the sin of the world or by the blood that they had to shed because they were martyrs for the faith or martyrs in stone by those who they were given the message to. He lets us know that there is something else about this throne that one must see.

Out from the throne came flashes of lightning, sounds, and peals of thunder. He says there are sounds, there's this movement that's taking place. He said, I couldn't quite explain it. I mean, what John sees is greater than any concert you have ever attended. The pyrotechnics that you've seen, the light show, the sound, there's no speaker sound, no Bose system that can compare to what John is hearing and seeing. There is a shifting going on, there's a movement that's happening here, and John sees it and he says it's like peals of thunder. He says it's like lightning. He said, I can hardly tolerate what I see and I can't communicate it.

If you go back to the book of Exodus in Exodus chapter 19, if you remember, Israel was at the mountain. I love it. God had brought them out of bondage. They had been there for 1446. He anchors them down at the mountain, he keeps them there for one year till about 1445 prior to entering into the wilderness wanderings. God first had to let them understand who they are worshipping. He had to give them a preview because sometimes we miss the God that we're serving. We don't understand the profundity, the grandeur, the massiveness, the majesty, the magnificence of the God that we serve.

So God wanted Israel to understand, I want you guys to recognize who I am. Don't you miss that I'm a holy God. So he tells Moses, get the people ready and bring them. Don't let them touch the mountain, don't get too close. You guys stay back because I'm going to come down. When I come down, things are going to start to shift, things are going to start to move, and if you get too close to the mountain, I'll kill you. The people are ready and they have cleaned themselves and purified themselves, and they come before the mountain. Then God begins to descend, the Bible tells us.

As God descends in the cloud to the top of the mountain, the mountain begins to shake, the earth begins to quake and move. The people begin to get afraid and scared, and they're like, "Moses, tell God to be quiet. We don't want to hear from you. We will listen to you, Moses." Why? Because when God comes, there is thunder, there is lightning, there is shifting, and there is a move that takes place when God is present. I love this. John sees it and John is trying to communicate it. John says lightning flashes, peals of thunder. Just as I see all of this, he says, I've never seen anything like it.

Saints, you and I have to understand the God that we serve. He's holy, and you and I just cannot approach a holy God in any kind of way. John is giving us a preview. He gave Israel a preview, and now John is saying, this is what I see. He says, but also I see these seven spirits before the throne. It's great. There are seven lamps burning, which are the spirits of God. He said before his throne it is illuminated by flames that are burning. He said, but these are the spirit of God. I'm convinced those spirits represent the illumination of God, the ability for God to open things up so that we can see and grasp them at a different level.

The burning is a purifying, a continual righteousness that's perpetual that exists before him. John says, I see it all. He says, man, the radiance of it, I can't describe, I've never seen anything like it. It's wonderful how he describes it because he says, as I'm even looking at that, I see a sea of glass in verse six. It is like crystal, it's clear, you can see through it in the center and around this throne. He said the splendor of it all, the majesty and the beauty, the glory of it, it is beyond the words that I can find to articulate it. This is the place where you and I one day will dwell.

John's revelation is a little more revelatory than Ezekiel and Daniel. Revelatory in the sense of information and insight, not in the sense of importance, but he has more detail. He says, I see the door, the one on the throne, the members of the royal court, the splendor of this throne. He says all of this is here. He said, but there's something else that I need you to understand. Point number two, he's going to let us know the praise and worship that takes place here in this throne. It's great. John is going to look at all these other members after he goes through the 24 elders, he's going to see these four living creatures.

These living creatures are around the throne, and he says in verse six, they are full of eyes in front and back. These are some unusual creatures, but they have eyes in the front and back, and I'm convinced the reason these creatures have eyes is because they represent the all-seeing God who is eternal and transcendent. There is no place that one may go out of the purview of God. These living creatures are representative of God and they serve as his vision, his seeing, and there's nowhere one can go and not be seen. With all the technology we have, cameras everywhere, from red light to red light, stop sign to stop sign, house to house, there are always dead spots.

There are zones where the camera might miss, but God, because he is God, because he is transcendent but imminently involved in our lives, God sees it all. Here it is, these creatures here, four of them, and he describes them in language and terms to the best of his ability. Verse seven, he says one is like a lion. That lion is a beastly, stately king of the jungle. He is majestic and fearless and just like our God. The second creature, he said, is like a calf. I believe in the sense of a calf as being the cattle representative of what God has produced as he owns the cattle. He owns everything in the created order.

Third, he talks about, I see one with the face of that of a man. A man meaning all of humanity here is represented, it is what God has designed, created in his image to serve. Then he talks also about the eagle. Every sphere here is covered. The eagle who is majestic, who flies, who has speed, great sight. It represents God in his totality, God who is strength, God who is kingly, God who is also soaring, flying, and God who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, who has created the hills, but also created man to be the ruler and the sovereign over the universe. All of this is here in these creatures. I'm convinced they comprise and they give us a good concept of who our God is, and they are there also around this throne serving God.

But they're not just there for decoration. They are there for a purpose, and point number two is what it is. They are there to praise and worship God. What we see in the latter part of chapter four is the praise and worship that takes place in the presence of God. I want you to see this because it's important. As believers, we must understand God expects us to praise him and give him glory. God expects that. When you read the Psalms, you will see throughout the Psalms, the Psalms give us commands: enter his courts with praise, come before him with thanksgiving. He wants his people to praise and worship him. Why? Because God knew that he was worthy of the praise.

In verse eight, we begin to see these creatures and what is happening with these creatures why they are there. He tells us the four living creatures in verse eight, each one of them they have six wings. Just like in Isaiah chapter six, we see these creatures with wings similar to like the seraphim and the cherubim, but nevertheless they have these eyes around them, and day and night, what do they do? They do not cease. This is perpetual praise to say holy, holy, holy. Here they are saying he is righteous, he is set apart, he is pure. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, and they are saying this consistently as they are dwelling there in his presence.

They never miss a moment to be able to give God praise. Then they describe him as the almighty, all-powerful one who was, who is, and who is to come. He said he's in the past, he's in the present, and he's also in the future. There is no tense where God does not dwell, there's no place where God does not dwell, and he lets us know this, that these creatures are there for a purpose. What is it? To praise and also to worship God. Let me see if I can unpack just a little bit more. Most times we get praise and worship confused, but you and I must understand that praise is very distinct from worship.

Praise is always audible. Praise requires you to open your mouth, praise requires you to project your voice, praise requires you to say something. Praise always emanates from the mouth when the tongue is moving. Praise requires you to use your voice. Worship is distinct because worship can be done because it is more in the emotive and the intellectual aspect. Worship is where we attribute value to something, and here these creatures understand that both must be done. What do they do? First of all, they open their mouth and they say holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.

They said, "Lord, you are a holy God. You are a worthy God, you are a set-aside God, a set-apart God. You are a distinct God. You are God like no other, and I just can't be quiet because you've been so good to me." I want to let you know something. I don't care how dignified you get, I don't care how refined you may be, at one point in time you're going to have to find a way to give God praise for what he has done. You're going to have to give him glory, you're going to have to open up your mouth. Some people say, "Well, I'm quiet and I like to do it in private." I'm going to tell you something. When you get to heaven, you're going to have to open your mouth.

Everything in the presence of God in his royal court is going to have to say something. You're going to have to praise him and give him glory for what he's done. John said when I looked around the throne, he said I didn't see anything silent. He said everything was giving God the praise that he deserved. Everything was opening its mouth and recognizing that God is worthy to be praised. But not only did those entities worship and give God praise, they went on in the Bible says the living creatures in verse nine, they were giving him glory, honor, and thanks.

What is this? This is where they go from the verbal to the emotive and the intellectual and they are recognizing that he deserves worship. It's not just enough for you to open your mouth. Then you have to go to the next step in the intellectual and the emotive and say I'm going to tangibly demonstrate, God, that you are worthy. How? I'm going to attribute value to you by what I possess and what I have. I'm going to use my time, I'm going to use my talents and treasures and I'm going to give them to you because I understand that you are more valuable than anything that I possess already, God.

Some of you still aren't convinced. Let me show you in the text. Look down further in verse 10. It says the 24 elders, what do they do? Notice the three things they do. Number one, they fall down. The posture of them. After the declaration has happened by the living creatures, now there is something that's happening with these 24 elders. They fall down. You have to understand that in antiquity and especially in Jesus' day, one of the ways that servants or those who were beneath one who were higher than them, they would bow down on their knees, and oftentimes they would kiss the feet of the one that was greater than them, or they would kiss the hem of the garment of the one greater than them.

And they would do that in an act of showing respect and honor and attributing worth. They are worshipping by kissing. They are doing this because they understand that the one they are in the presence of is greater than them, and that's exactly what the 24 elders do here. They recognize this, so they fall down. After they fall down to the one who sits on the throne, the Bible says they are worshipping him in verse 10, but they didn't stop there. They cast their crowns at his feet. Watch. The elders had received these crowns from the one who sits on the throne because they had overcome. They were valuable.

But because they were in the presence of the one who gave them the ability to overcome, because they are in the presence of the one who gave his son so that they might have access to eternal life, because they are in the presence of the eternal one, the transcendent one, the omniscient one, they said, we cannot keep these crowns because there's somebody greater than us. Not only are we going to verbally praise him, we're going to worship him by laying it at his feet and saying worthy are you, Oh God, to receive glory, honor, and power. They worshipped him by giving up their crowns. They recognized whose presence they dwell in, they recognize that he is really worthy of the true honor.

They weren't offended by taking off their crowns and bowing down to worship him. Saints of God, I want to let you know John is giving us a glimpse, and he wants us to know that there is only one who deserves glory and honor and who deserves our praise and our worship. It's beautiful. He says they're worshipping him and they tell him in conclusion verse 11: worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory, honor, and power, for you created all things and because of your will, they exist and were created. John says, I want you to see where you're going to dwell. Saints, that's our home, heaven in the presence of the creator.

What we should learn is not the protocol for the kings and queens and presidents of the world, but the protocol for the king of the universe. He has given us some stipulations. Number one, we must be ready to praise and worship him continually. He's worthy of it, he's deserving of it. One thing that I want us to understand, it's time that we start practicing our praise and worship. You see, some of us we want to wait till we get to the sanctuary and we want to wait and hope that the choir gets us hyped and get us crunk, get us ready for. But I'm going to tell you something, you and I are going to have to learn how to discipline ourselves and cultivate a lifestyle of praise and worship.

I'm just giving him the glory that he deserves because my God is worthy of it. I'm not going to wait till I get to heaven to give him praise. I'm going to do it right now. This is my dress rehearsal right here in time to get ready for eternity. You and I got to learn how to praise him, we got to give him glory. Take a lesson from the 24 elders, take a lesson from the living creatures. Give God the glory, give him the praise and worship him right now. Our God is worthy, he's worthy. Nobody like our God, and we have to magnify. Saints of God, it's time we do it now because God has been gracious, compassionate, and kind, forgiving, long-suffering for us.

Many of us know it. This week alone, we violated eight of the Ten Commandments. This week alone. But God has granted us grace, and therefore we say God, thank you. We praise you, we love you, Lord. We are delighted that you're merciful and you are the God of the second chance. Let's give the Lord a handclap of praise.

Guest (Male): What a glorious picture of heaven and how exciting to know that this awaits those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ, Dr. Coleman. Friend, I trust you won't delay beginning a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It's the most important decision for your life, and it's what will ultimately matter. To learn more, please call us at 346-386-4621, or you can leave a message at rochecolemanministries.org.

You'll find God's heart of compassion and mercy for you clearly explained in Dr. Coleman's book, Jonah: God's Second Chance Through Resurrection. It's a message of hope and reconciliation to God. I hope you'll order your copy today. Our impact thought for today is: the royal court of God provides the ultimate praise and worship experience. Friends, nothing about this life, the joys or the deepest sorrows, will matter as we stand in the presence of God in all of his majesty and glory. Let's praise and worship him even now as we anticipate what awaits us.