Crowns Down
Revelation 4:9-11
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In Revelation 4, twenty-four elders wear crowns God gave them... and still throw them down. This week asks: what's on your head?
Last week we stepped through the open door and found a throne that is not empty, and not Caesar’s. This week the camera moves from the throne to the heads around it. Twenty-four elders, seated, robed in white, crowned in gold… wearing every promise Jesus made to the seven churches. And whenever the living creatures sing, the elders fall down and lay those crowns before the throne: “You are worthy, our Lord and God.”
In John’s world, “worthy” was what crowds shouted at emperors, and “our Lord and God” was Domitian’s own title. John takes the emperor’s chant and aims it at the only One of whom it was ever true.
Week 2 of WORTHY is about the difference between calling Jesus Savior and calling him Lord… about the things we can hold onto like crowns, and what happens to them when we actually look at him. The service ends in the water, with baptism, the most physical crown-throwing the church does.
Also in this message: Revelation 2:10; 3:5; 3:11; 3:21 · Psalm 8:5 · Genesis 3:5 · Acts 12:21-23 · Philippians 2:6-9 · Luke 9:23