Worship in Heaven

Revelation 4–5

Story to read: Worship in the Throne Room
Bible: Revelation 4–5

1. Handing something over

Ask for a volunteer and give them something small to hold — a pen, a set of keys. Now ask them to give it to somebody else and let that person decide what to do with it.

How did that feel? Handing something over is easy. Handing over the deciding is not.

2. The door in heaven

Last time the seven churches got their report cards, and the obvious question is: how could any of them possibly get it right?

Chapter 4 answers by opening a door. John looks into heaven and sees a throne, and God on it, and everyone around him is simply astonished.

Then they do something odd. The twenty-four elders take off their crowns and put them down in front of the throne.

They are handing over the deciding. That is what worship is.

3. Thanks, praise, worship

There is a ladder here worth naming, because children often think worship just means singing.

• Maybe God has answered a prayer, or comforted you, or made you brave. You said thank you. That is thanks.
• After a while you notice that the one giving all these good things is himself good. That is praise.
• And eventually you think: if he is that good, I can trust him with everything. That is worship — and it is the crown going down.

Once you have handed over the deciding, living God’s way stops feeling like a rule and starts feeling like sense.

4. The lion who is a lamb

Then a scroll appears that nobody is worthy to open, and John actually cries about it.

An elder tells him to stop: “Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah has conquered.”

So John looks — and sees a lamb. A lamb that looks as if it has been killed.

Take a moment on this. The lion is announced. The lamb appears. And the lamb is not a downgrade; the lamb is how the lion won.

5. Why not just remove the bad people?

Children often ask the obvious question: wouldn’t it be quicker if God simply got rid of everyone who is mean?

People asked that two thousand years ago too, and Revelation says no. God does not want to destroy people who have gone wrong — he wants to put them right. And if we are honest, we would all be somewhere on that list.

That is why the winner is a lamb and not a lion with teeth.

6. The surprise at the end

Here is the strange bit. Everything difficult that follows — the seals, the trumpets, the bowls — comes out of this room. Out of the throne room. Out of the place where God is being worshipped.

That sounds alarming until you notice one more detail: there is a rainbow around the throne. A rainbow is God’s old promise that he is not out to destroy the world.

So whatever the difficult chapters are doing, they are being done by someone good. We will find out what they are for.

Memory verse: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain.” (Revelation 5:12)

Look for yourself

Two quiet minutes. Nobody has to say anything out loud.

Close your eyes. You are standing just inside the open door.

What do you hear? Thunder is coming off the throne, and singing that does not stop, and a sound like a great many rivers.

What do you smell? Incense is burning, and it is made of prayers.

What do you feel — is it warm? Is the floor solid? Is there any wind?

Now look down at your own hands. Are you holding anything you would rather not put down?

7. Prayer

Father, thank you that you are worth trusting with the deciding. Jesus, thank you that you won by giving yourself up and not by crushing anybody. Help us to put our crowns down. Amen.

Appendix: Ideas for leaders

Opening activity: The handing-over game above, or make paper crowns at the start and lay them in a pile at the front when you reach section 3.

Craft idea: A rainbow around a throne. Children write inside the arc one thing they would like to trust God with this week.

Questions:

1. What is the difference between saying thank you to God and trusting him completely?
2. Why do you think John saw a lamb when he was told to look at a lion?
3. Is there something you would find hard to hand over?

Song suggestions: “Worthy is the Lamb” or any throne-room song; a simple thank-you song.

Prep note: The lion-becomes-lamb moment is the hinge of the whole book. If a session runs short, cut section 3 rather than section 4.