Pastor Gail – Opening Prayer
1. There’s no better place to be right now than here in church today. I’m going to be sharing our service today with you, to people in Kefalonia and there are also people in America that are watching, in the middle of the night. It’s such a special morning. As we advance through this week, to the final event. When eternal victory is won over death, hell and the grave.
2. Would you pray with me? Father, we acknowledge this morning that there really is nothing good or lovable in us. Often our words and our thoughts they’re just not lovely. But yet you still love us. You love us with a love that never grows weary. A love that never ends. So, we pray today, Lord, that our hearts would be open to your love today. Lord, even as we look at creation around us that you’ve made so beautiful, Lord, we invite you also to reign in us. Make us truly more your own today as we remember you. Lord, whatever frustrations we feel or discouragement. Maybe our bodies are sick, but whatever is making us weary today, we pray for your love to invade that, and oh, draw us nearer today. Lord, in you we are a new creation. Thank You that we can walk in Jesus.
3. Would you stand please.

Pastor Gail – Reading the Word
4. With someone you’re standing next to, just say to them, ‘Praise the Lord for the joy that Jesus gives.’ Please remain standing for a short reading of the Word.
5. Matthew 27:28-31, “They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.”

Anton Beukes – Main Message
6. What a privilege it is to gather tonight. It feels like light in the darkness, yeah. And maybe the somber atmosphere creates towards that. I’m privileged to be here with my brother Stavros. And thank him for his service in translating. And I was humbled and thankful last night, that he washed my feet last night, and showed that he is a follower of the Lord.
7. When we come together on this Good Friday, we like to look at the events that played out in Jerusalem. And maybe we look at it from the view of the women before the cross, who traveled with Jesus and saw him preaching and healing but now suffering.
8. Maybe we look from the view of John, the disciples standing with Mary, the mother of Jesus. Or the other condemned man on the cross seeing the compassion of Jesus. And I think many of the world look today as the Jews and the Pharisees and the soldiers, condemning Jesus all over again.
9. But I want us today to look from a different perspective. A different perspective that John saw in his spirit. Not only the events that led to the cross and the crucifixion and the death itself. But how it all played within the cosmic reality and history of the whole world. And I want to invite you to go with me to Revelation 5:1. And the text will be on the screen. But keep your Bibles open as we go through this text. Let’s pray together.
10. Father, thank you for your Word. And you open your Word for us. And we pray, Lord, that your Spirit will explain your Word to us. To hear it, to believe it, and to live it out. Guide us and lead us as we pray. Amen
11. After John wrote the seven letters to the churches of Revelation, we begin to see a new vision come to him in chapter 4. And sometimes it’s good to read the whole chapters 4, 5, 7 and other parts as well, because it’s a beautiful play that John sees in the heavenly realms.
12. And sometimes I think it’s like going to a theater. Some of the old theaters with these heavy curtains that slowly open. And the more they open, the more you see what’s happening on the stage.
13. And as this vision gets revealed, the spotlight is on the center of the universe. And in the center is a throne. And on the throne is the creator of the universe. And then the curtains open a bit more. And we see 24 elders around the throne. Not old men. But rulers. Those with authority.
14. And then we see that there are seven spirits, or seven-fold spirit of God around the throne as well. And the last thing that we see in this chapter, are the four living creatures, before the throne of God. And it’s these four living creatures and 24 elders. That worship and praise the Lord.
15. And then we step into Revelation 5:1-14. And now we see that there is movement in this play. “Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to break the seal and open the scroll?’ But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth saw or even looked inside it. I went and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep. See the lion of the tribe of Judah. The root of David has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and the seven seals.’ Then I saw a lamb looking as if it had been slain. Standing at the center of the throne encircled by the four living creatures and elders, the lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the lamb. Each one had a hub, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. And they sang a new song saying, ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and you are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals. You have made them to be a Kingdom of priests to serve our God, and they will reign on earth.’ Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels numbering thousands upon thousands and ten thousand times ten thousands. They encircled the throne and the living creature and the elders. In a loud voice they were saying, ‘Worthy is the lamb who was slain to receive power and health and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise.’ Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea and all that is in them saying, ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the lamb, be praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever.’ And the four living creatures said, ‘Amen,’ and the elders fell down and worshipped.”
16. A bit of a different perspective of what is happening. We look at the cross. We see the suffering. But the heavens see the victory. So, as we look at this episode, we see there are 5 stages. And let’s look at each one of these 5 stages.
17. We look at the 5 stages of this chapter. We look at the five stages of this episode. In the first verse, we see that God has the scroll in his hand. The scroll is in his right hand. The right hand is where the authority and the power lie. And we see that the scroll is written on both sides and is sealed with 7 seals.
18. The scroll represents the fulfillment of history, God’s plan, the judgment over all nations. But before that can come into being, all 7 seals had to be broken. These seals represent the events that need to happen.
19. But the second stage sets a problem. But the second stage gives us a problem. Because we see in verses 2-4 that when the angel asks, ‘Who is worthy to break the seals,’ that nobody can be found.
20. Not in heaven, not on earth, not under the earth. No heavenly being, no religion, no authority, no king, no prince, no governor, not even a demon or the cult can break these seals. No one is found that is worthy to open the seals.
21. And John, like so many others, realized that if there is no one that can break the seals, and brings in the fulfillment of God’s will, then there is no hope. And all he could do was to cry and to weep and to sob before the throne. Because nothing created, whether a spirit, a person, an animal, or a religion can save, can open the scrolls.
22. But then we walk into the third stage of this episode. The announcement that there is one worthy to open the scrolls. The elders say, ‘Do not weep. Because look, look at the Lion of Judah, the root of David. He is worthy. Because he has triumphed. He alone is worthy to open the scrolls. and to break the 7 seals.’ Like the prophets of the Old Testament.
23. He said, look, there is One. The One that is worthy. One that will fulfil, the One that is sent, the One that is worthy, the One that is obedient. And the One that will triumph.
24. And then we walk into the fourth stage. And here we see one of the biggest paradoxes of Revelation. John heard about the lion. But when he looks, he sees a lamb. The triumph of the lion, did not come through his strength. Through his authority. Through his big presence. It came through the transformation into a lamb. Not the strongest animal. The weakest. The vulnerable.
25. And when John looks, he sees the lamb. Looking as if it had been slain. Not as if it had been killed, sacrificed, but slain. When we think of some animal being slain. We see the violence. We see the blood and the gore. We see the innocence being taken over by the violence.
26. That is the lamb that John saw. But the lamb was lying down. He wasn’t on the altar or the cross. John saw the lamb standing at the center of the throne. He was slain. But he stood up. He rose up and stands in the center of the universe. In front of the throne of God. Encircled by the 24 elders. And the 4 living creatures.
27. But the lamb also had 7 horns. The fullness of power and authority. And 7 eyes. The sevenfold spirit of God that goes throughout the world. And when the lamb, the lion of Judah stood before the throne, and saw the scroll in the one’s hand. He did not wait. He did not hesitate. He did not pray about it. He was not hesitant. He went and took the scroll. He was obedient. He was full of confidence.
28. And then we walk into the last stage of this episode. And we see the reaction of those around the throne. And from verses 8 to 14, we see 3 reactions from those around the throne. First it was the 4 living creatures and the 24 elders, that bowed down before the lamb.
29. In the Old Testament, God clearly tells his people, ‘Do not make any image and bow down before anything but me.’ And when the elders and the 4 living creatures bowed before the lamb, they acknowledged and proclaimed that Jesus was not just worthy. He was not just the lamb and the lion. He was God himself. And they worshiped him and they praised him. And they sang a new song saying, ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and open the seals.’
30. Why? Because you were slain. And with your blood, you, with your blood, you purchased for God. You redeemed people from every tribe and language and people and nation. Not just a few. Not just one people. Every people, every nation, every tribe, every language.
31. That was the purpose of the lamb being slain. For what purpose? Just to be saved? Yes, to be saved. But also, to make us a new Kingdom, a new people, and priests to serve God that will reign on earth with him.
32. But they were not the only ones that bowed down. Because now the curtain has opened even more. And John sees angels. Not just a legion. Not just 10,000. Thousands, upon thousands. 10,000, upon 10,000. And they were saying, worthy is the lamb.
33. Both the living creatures and the elders and the angels said, that only the lamb of God is worthy. And only he was slain. And because he is worthy, and because he was obedient to death, the angels say, ‘You are worthy to receive power, and wealth, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and praise.’ How many things did I just say? One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. The fullness of glory to him alone.
34. But it’s not only the rulers, the 24 elders, and the four living creatures, and the angels around that declare Christ’s worth. But in verse 13 we also read, that every creature, in heaven and on earth, and under the earth and on the sea, they all say, ‘To him who sits on the throne, God almighty, and to the lamb, be praise, and honor, and glory, and power, now, and forever, and forever, and forever, and everyone says, amen.’
35. The elders bow down and worship. What is our reaction? When we see God’s glory, manifested in the obedience of Christ, who alone is worthy to break the seals, to bring this world and all of God’s plan to completion, if we cannot say amen to that, and if we cannot worship on hearing that, then we are not worthy to stand before the throne. When we look at the cross from this different perspective, we see the suffering. We see the sacrifice. But we see the victory and the fulfillment of God’s plan.
36. This last week, we looked at the names of Jesus. First, we looked at the names that showed Jesus as divine as God. Then on Wednesday, we looked at the names that showed Christ’s authority. And last night, we looked at the names that showed Jesus’ relationship with us. And today, we look at the names that show his role as the one who saves.
37. Jesus is the Savior. From the beginning, when even his birth was called, Luke says, ‘Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you.’ And after his death, that was the message that the disciples and the apostles carried with them.
38. In 1 John 4:14, we read, ‘The Father has sent his Son to be Savior of the world. The Savior delivers us from sin and judgment.’ But Jesus is also the Redeemer. He is the one who pays the price for humanity’s freedom. He paid the ransom for many. He paid the price. In him, we have redemption through his blood. But he is also called the Lamb of God, the One sacrificed for our sins.
39. He came to fulfill the Passover. He became the substitute for us. And so, in this text that we read, we see Jesus as the Savior for all, to become the Lamb of God, to be sacrificed, to fulfill the Passover, to redeem us from our sins.
40. But we’re also going to look at another text in Revelation 7:6, we see that Jesus begins to open the seals. And between the sixth and the seventh seals, there is an interlude, there is a pause. And we read that in the Revelation 7. And we see that there is a multitude of people from every nation standing before the throne.
41. And then we read in Revelation 7:15-17, “Therefore, they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple. And he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. Never again will they hunger. Never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd. He will lead them to springs of living water and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
42. In chapter 5, we saw the first paradox. The lion became the lamb. In this text, we see the second paradox. The lamb becomes the shepherd. Jesus is also the good shepherd. He saves us, but he continues to save us. He protects us and guides us. He is the one that holds all his people together.
43. In these 4 names, we see that Jesus is the Savior. We see what he does. He rescues. We see how he does it. He paid the price. We see the means. He becomes the lamb that is the sacrifice. We see the ongoing relationship. He is the good shepherd that cares, that guides and leads.
44. Jesus is our Savior. He is the lamb that was sacrificed. He was slain to become the shepherd that leads. Amen.
45. Thank you, Lord Jesus, that you are our Savior, that you are the sacrificial lamb, that died in my place, that with your blood you bought me, you redeemed me, you freed me. Thank you that you are my Shepherd, now and forever more. Amen.

Pastor Gail – Closeout
46. Well, as we go all through the land today, wherever you’re at, you can hear the bells ringing, symbolically declaring that he was on the cross for us. But tomorrow night, we will celebrate together, that no he’s not on the cross, amen. And all heaven as we heard today, worships him and we want to join with all of creation, worthy is the Lamb, hallelujah. We are grateful, hallelujah, because Jesus Christ, You live, You live, we thank you.
47. So please bring your candles, we’ll see you tomorrow night at 10:30, don’t be late, amen. And wherever you go today, don’t wait till tomorrow to carry the light, carry the light today, amen. Let someone else see the light of Jesus in you, amen. God bless, you’re dismissed.