Read: Revelation 5:1-14
I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain. (v. 6)
For many people, the book of Revelation is so strange and opaque that they stay away from it. But that’s a shame, because the book of Revelation is like a spiritual telescope offering us a sneak peek past space and time into what heavenly worship is like.
Revelation doesn’t show us what worship will be like after the end of world. It gives us a glimpse of what worship is like right now, if we had the spiritual eyes to see it.
If we could see what is really happening when we worship God, it would be so incredible that no words could describe it, and only the prophetic images of types, symbols, and poetry like that found in the book of Revelation could even come close.
Here in chapter five, John sees something truly striking. He sees a lamb standing as though it had been slain (v. 6). Here, at the center of heavenly worship, is an expression of the way God meets us in our suffering. In the person of Jesus, God took on our pain and suffering, and the Lamb of God bears on his body the marks of sin and evil.
If the Lamb can bring his wounds into the throne room of God, then surely we can bring our hurt and pain to church. Your pain has a place in worship.
As you pray, ask the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, to have mercy on you.
About the Author
Steven Rodriguez lives in Rochester, New York, with his wife and four children.
