They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God....

Revelation 7:11b-12 (NLT)

They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: “Amen!
Praise and glory 
and wisdom and thanks and honor
 and power and strength
 be to our God for ever and ever.
  Amen!”

Have you ever been in a state of mind and emotion where you “fell down on your face” and worshipped God?  Have you ever worshiped God like this where you spoke and/or sang His praise, glory, wisdom, honor, power and strength plus gave Him all your thanks?

Who are “they” who fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God?  Rev 7:9 says that there was a “great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues”.  Rev 7:14 then says, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation……..”.   The great tribulation was predicted by Jesus in Matt 24:21.  It is a time where God’s wrath will be expressed upon the whole earth.  The word “tribulation” in the Greek is “thlipsis” that can be translated as “affliction”, “oppression”,  or “distress”.  Chapters 6 through 19 of Revelation describe what happens during the great tribulation.  Basically, the great tribulation will be a time of terrible suffering. For example, you can read Rev 6:8 where Death and Hades will be given power to kill one-quarter of the earth’s population by the sword, famine, plague and wild beasts.  So many Christians want to believe in the rapture of the church (I Thess 4:13-18) so that they are not part of the great suffering to occur in the great tribulation.      

John Walvoord wrote a classic study on the book of Revelation (http://bible.org/series/revelation-jesus-christ).  The “they” of Rev 7:11-12 are martyrs who died for their faith during the tribulation.  The antichrist, described in Rev 13, will kill anyone who does not worship him.  The result will be multiplied thousands of martyrs. Those who died martyrs during the tribulation will praise God in the manner described in Rev 7:11-12.

Look at the seven words that described the worship of God by those who have been raised from the dead after their being killed in the great tribulation:

§ Praise—“eulogia”—an invocation of blessing, to celebrate with praises

§ Glory—“doxa”—majesty, exaltation, kingly majesty of God and the Messiah

§ Wisdom—“sophia”—supreme intelligence

§ Thanks—“eucharistia”—the giving of thanks

§ Honor—“time”—deference, reverence

§ Power—“dynamis”---power to perform miracles

§ Strength—“ischys”—ability, force, might

You do not need to be a martyr to express your praise to almighty God like this.  There exist some beautiful contemporary Christian songs that express these words with music that will make you cry with joy.  I recommend that you find the song “To Him Who Sits on the Throne” (words and music by Debbye Graafsma) that will uplift your heart as you imagine hundreds of thousands of believers singing to almighty God. 

“To Him Who sits on the throne and unto the Lamb.  Be blessing and glory and honor and power Forever”…….Amen.

Your own ways versus committing your plans to the Lord

Proverbs 16:1-3 (Amplified Bible)

The plans of the mind and orderly thinking belong to man, but from the Lord comes the (wise) answer of the tongue. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits -- the thoughts and intents of the heart. Roll your works upon the Lord -- commit and trust them wholly to Him; (He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable to His will, and) so shall your plans be established and succeed.

One of my most grateful experiences in my life was the day many years ago when I first read this passage.  At the time I read this, I was a young, rededicated Christian man who still had high ambitions to rise the corporate ladder and be as important, rich, and successful as I could possibly be.  After reading this, I realized, thankfully, that I was not including the Lord in my plans, my motives were strictly selfish and egotistical, and somehow I knew that if I continued as I was without the Lord’s involvement, I would fail.  Who knows what would have happened had I never be exposed to these truths, never included the Lord in my plans and never deviated from my selfish ways?  Interestingly, I will freely admit that by trying to follow these verses, I did not rise high at all in the corporate ladder and did not even meet most of the goals that I had originally established for my career.  Yet, without question in my own heart, my career, and, more importantly, my life have been highly successful. 

While I applied these verses to my professional life, they also apply in all other aspects of our lives---family, personal, and spiritual.  The NASB translation states for 16:3, “Commit your ways to the Lord and your plans will be established.”  By allowing the Lord to be included in your ways, actions, motives, and decisions, He will pave the way for you to be successful because you are following His way for your life and His way is better than anything you could imagine.  The Lord is eternal while your life is temporal.  He has eternity in mind for you and will enable you to live your short time on earth in ways that will bless you both here and for eternity.

Here are some simple truths to keep in mind that hopefully will change your life as they did mine:

1.    Wisdom comes from reverence for the Lord and His Word (Proverbs 1:7, 9:10).  Such wisdom will enable you to speak wisely.  Whenever I am giving a talk where I know what I’m going to say, but don’t know what questions I’ll be asked, I pray for wisdom in the use of my tongue.  Also, in general, everyday, I try to remember to pray for wise ways to communicate with others, especially when needing to be appropriately responsive in speech (and action).

2.   Humans are self-deceptive.  Without the Lord in your life, you may think that you are pure (flawless), but you are not.  Satan deceives people such that they cannot see their actions as wrong.  The Lord evaluates your heart and sees your motives and you cannot deceive him even if you are deceiving yourself.  Self-deception leads to many wrong actions and attitudes.

3.   If you follow the truth and wisdom of 16:3, many good things will happen because the Lord is in control of your life.  He will make your paths straight (Prov 3:6).  He will establish your plans that will result in successful living rather than your own flawed planning that most likely will fail.  Even worldly success experienced by godless people does not meet that they are successful in the eyes of the Lord. 

For the believer in the truth of the Lord’s Word, success will come naturally because you will be led to do what you love and what the Lord created you to do.  What do you love to do and what would you love to be?  Commit these to the Lord through daily prayer and trusting in Him and watch what He does.   

What Christian love is and is not

I Corinthians 13:1-8a, 13 (NIV)

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.  And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 

How many wedding ceremonies have you attended where part or all of First Corinthians 13 is read or recited?  How many times have you read this passage yourself or read books about it or heard sermons preached on it?  The point is not that you don’t know what this passage proclaims; rather the question is whether you practice what it proclaims?  Verses 1 through 3 remind you that you might be the most intelligent, wisest, faithful and giving person on earth (note that these are some of the spiritual gifts described in the previous chapter), but if you do not love God nor love others, you accomplish nothing, you are nothing and you gain nothing.  If you claim to be a Christian, the Holy Spirit in you will enable you to love God and others unless, of course, the your attitudes and actions (or lack of) quench the Spirit’s effectiveness in your life. 

Verse 4 through the first part of verse 8 list 16 qualities of authentic Christian love.  When Jesus asked Peter “Do you love Me?” (John 21:15-17) three times, He was asking Peter if he had the kind of love that is described here.  He asks you the same question.  How do you apply these qualities with your spouse, your children and other family members, and in your workplace? 

Love is	What This Really Means	Love is NOT	What This Really Means
Patient	Will you overlook others’ weaknesses?  Will you suffer for your loved one(s)?	Jealous	Are you envious of others’ success?  Do you promote others over yourself?
Kind	Do you speak kind words and do kind deeds	Proud	Do you boast too much?  Do you submit to loved ones’ needs first?
Truthful	Are you honest with others?  Will you confide your weaknesses?	Arrogant	Is there any hidden superi-ority you feel toward your spouse, children, or co-workers?
Sustaining	How well do you handle stress?  Are you an example of inner strength?	Rude	How courteous are you?  What kind of language do you use?
Believing	Do you give the benefit of the doubt?  Do you uplift and encourage others?	Selfish	Do you truly care for others more than yourself?
Hopeful	Do you remain optimistic?  Do you expect the best?	Touchy	Are you easily irritated?  Does your tongue get you into trouble?
Enduring	Do you defend your spouse?  Do you defend your employer?	Judgmental	Do you hold grudges?  Are you nagging, critical, find fault in others?
Successful	Do you see your relationships growing? Can you give evidences of this truth?	Sinful	Is there any promiscuity in your life?  How do you think God sees you as a loving, caring person?

The Bible claims, “Love never fails……”  The Greek word for “fail” means “to come to an end”.  Homes and families built on true Christian love will never fail.  God’s love for His children will never fail.  Christ loved the church (read Ephesians 5:22-28; also used frequently in wedding ceremonies and marriage counseling), despite all our mistakes, faults, and weaknesses. His love never fails. 

In the last verse of I Cor 13, the claim is made that love is greater than faith or hope (interesting exercise---find all the passages of Paul’s letters where he emphasizes faith, hope, and love in the same paragraph---there are many!).  Why is love the greatest?  Here’s one illustration—a young man is charged with murder.  His mother has faith that further evidence will cause charges to be dropped.  No, there’s enough evidence that he is brought to trial.  She continues to have faith that her son is innocent and hope that he will be found innocent at the end of the trial.  No, he is found guilty and sentenced to death.  She continues to have hope that the death sentence will not be carried out.  Yet it is carried out.  However, no matter that her faith and hope are gone, her love for her son remains forever.  “The greatest of these is love”. 

Review the qualities of love, identify those where you are strong and those where you need improvement and ask the Lord to help you to strengthen your ability to love as these verses teach.   

God will never leave you nor forsake you

Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV)

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.

Moses spoke, then wrote, these words as he announced to all Israel in the desert that he would no longer be able to lead them because of his age and because of the commandment of the Lord (Deut 31:1-2).  The Lord Himself and Joshua would be leading them into the Promised Land (Deut 31:3).  In what could be considered Moses’ final words to the people he had led for 40 years, what encouraging mandates did he leave with his people? 

·  Be strong and courageous

·  Do not be afraid or terrified

·  The Lord your God goes with you

·  He will never leave you nor forsake you

The first two directives were what the people needed to do and be, the last two directives were what God will do.  What was true then is still true today.  These are words that apply to you every day of your life.  Imagine that everyday before you go out into the world, be it your job or wherever, that you recite these four declarations.  Tell yourself to be strong and courageous.  Tell yourself not to be afraid of anything.  Remind yourself that God goes with you, is always with you no matter where you are, what you have done, or anything.  And, be assured that He will never leave you nor forsake you.  He will never, ever leave you or forsake you.  Got that?  He will never leave you nor forsake you.  Can you face whatever is challenging you each day with encouraging words like these?  All you need is faith that all these promises are true.  Faith is being fully assured that whatever you hope for, it will happen. 

Be specific-------what do you need to be strong and courageous about?  What scares, even terrifies you?  You need to identify these things, even people, then specifically lift them in prayer as you repeats these promises.  For example, “Lord I am afraid of dying.  Help me to be strong and courageous and not to be afraid of dying or terrified of death.  You can help me because I believe that You are always with me, You will never abandon me. You will never leave me in some awful place that includes my state of mind.  No matter what I might feel, You are not leaving me.  I know that I can count on You to help me face my fear.”  This can be a model prayer for whatever or whoever you fear.

Interestingly, the phrase “I will never leave you; I will never forsake you” is repeated in Hebrews 13:5 in the context of being content with what you have as well as not being afraid of other people.  There are all kinds of situations in our lives where we feel fear or insecurity or stress or some kind of negative emotion where these promises of God will come to our aid if we simply remember them and believe in them. 

“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”  Deuteronomy 31:8

“Let your faith be bigger than your fears” -- Unknown