Rev. 5
Three more songs of worship! What do they say about the Lamb? How do these affect your own worship? Having just read through the three letters of John, where he bears witness that the man, Jesus, is God, the Christ, I see confirmation of that testimony in this Revelation. In this chapter, for instance, the worthy one was introduced as the triumphant Lion of Judah. Yet when John looked, he saw “a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain” (Rev. 5:6a). The worship songs were sung to this slain Lamb. They then declare that it is because the Lamb was slain yet overcame that He is the only one worthy to open the scroll and its seals. Thus, all of heaven declares that Jesus, who bought us with His blood, is the only one worthy to make our salvation complete.
This confirmation comes right after the messages to the seven churches, most of whom had lost sight to some degree or another of God’s grace, embodied in Jesus Christ. We know that the entire Bible is the story of Jesus, because Jesus is God’s redemptive plan for mankind. The Old Testament set the stage, revealing man’s need. It also foretold God’s promised solution. As it turns out, that solution was to come in two stages. Most of the New Testament, then, covers the implementation of stage one. Stage two is yet to come. So this book of Revelation becomes a bridge. It connects what now has been – the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ – with what is yet to come through and because of Him. It declares that Jesus, the slain Lamb, will yet be the final fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan for mankind.
Ezra 3-4
Why do you think some of the older people wept when they saw the temple foundation being laid? Given the fractal nature of the Bible, I can’t help but relate Israel’s’ exile into Babylon to Adam and Eve’s ejection from the Garden of Eden. In the Garden, everything was perfect. Adam and Eve lived without shame in the direct presence of God. Because of their sin, however, they lost what they had. To this point in time, it is fair to say that it has never been the same again. And it won’t be until the end of time.
God did, however, restore a remnant of humanity. Israel’s settlement in the Promised Land, though far from the perfect situation, has some diminished similarity with Adam and Eve’s existence in the Garden. It is an imperfect representation of God’s ultimate restoration of mankind. The restored remnant did not walk in the direct presence of God, but God did choose to dwell with them through His glorious temple, built by Solomon. So once again, God’s people lived in relationship with God. As with Adam and Eve, however, their sin drove them out of God’s presence.
The return from exile, then, is another iteration of the restoration of the remnant. At the same time, though, God shows us the deteriorating nature of sin, as the “restored” condition of God’s people continues to diminish. Even with just the altar built and foundation laid, I imagine the older priests and Levites could see that the new temple was just a shadow of what had been before. And, in truth, what had been before was just a shadow of what had originally been. These restorations were never meant to fully restore. They were to give us an image of God’s promise while revealing our need.