Dispatches From the Throne

What happens in heaven stays fixed in heaven

Welcome back to my posts on Revelation, where the texts will become more cryptic, demanding more of the reader than a casual look through. Today’s text is Revelation Chapters 4 and 5. Happy reading!

It’s a frequent theme of science fiction, whether in books or movies. It’s the stuff of imaginative minds taking an unusual thought, and running with it, in pursuit of a possible story. And this is the question which rises to the surface:

What would happen if time stood still?

That’s right. Imagine that no clock anywhere is ticking off seconds, minutes, and hours. Imagine the sun not setting (or, alternatively, the sun not rising). Imagine no one growing older. And imagine yourself caught in that one unending moment of time. Whatcha gonna do? Who ya gonna call? (Okay, I’ve just drifted into a different movie. Apologies.)

I’ll leave to others to be the judge of whether that idea makes for a good story. For myself, however, I find that the time-standing-still concept resonates with one of the key structural pieces of Revelation - John’s visions which he declares to have seen in heaven.

Our introduction to the first of these portraits occurs in Chapters 4-5. In actuality, the vision encompasses an entire section of the book, from 4:1-8:5. It is the description coming from one revelatory vision which John witnessed when he was “in the Spirit” (4:2). And the centerpiece of this section is the formal reception of the scroll by the Lamb, and his prerogative to open the seals on the scroll.

And here I would venture to say that Time Stood Still. How so?

In one revelatory moment John sees the throne of God, the heavenly hosts surrounding the throne in concentric circles, the awe-inspiring environment where God reigns, heaven rejoices, and the inhabitants of the earth suffer desolation and judgment.

And no time elapses on the clock. What happens in heaven transpires outside of our spatial and temporal framework. What happens in heaven stays fixed in heaven. It’s a done deal.

And when play resumes (8:6-9:21), the saints possess the assurance that, even when evil has done its worst, God’s purposes and promises are forever settled. God’s will is done in heaven. Period. What is required of us isn't the transformation of the world, but our commitment to the truth, our patient endurance, and our faithful witness to world, until he returns.

So what? What good does this time-standing-still vision serve? Is it simply make-believe in an otherwise godless world? When we are creatures of time and space, of what use is this portrait, and ones still to come?

The scenes which appear in Revelation 4 and 5, in which time stands still, are, before all else, scenes of worship. Chapter 4 focuses on “the one who is seated on the throne”, his appearance, and his surroundings. This is the God who “created all things, and by his will they existed and were created.” And heaven is taken up in an unending praise, triggered by the four living creatures, and amplified by the twenty-four elders. Chapter 5 witnesses the Lamb taking the scroll from the hand of the one who sits on the throne, and with that the hosts of heaven again engage in praise, singing a new song in accordance with the redeeming work of the Lamb who was slain. This is a song which is continuous with the life in heaven.

That prompts me to suggest the following:

When we pray, time stands still.

That is, the matters for which we pray are no longer subject to our earth-bound parameters of time and space. The clue which reveals this is the fact that the twenty-four elders who surround the throne possess the prayers of the saints (5:8), and they are poured out alongside the songs of heaven, which are in constant motion. When we pray, heaven is at attention, and time stops.

That this is the case is confirmed in the book of Daniel. In Daniel 9, we find Daniel in fervent prayer, fearing that God’s time of deliverance from exile may arrive and find Israel unrepentant, unbelieving, and tied down to life in Babylon. At that moment, however, something unexpected happens.

While I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Danel, I have now come out to give you wisdom and understanding. At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved.” (Daniel 9:21-23)

Whether we are praying alone, or joining with the saints on the Lord’s Day, our worship in praise and thanksgiving, in repentance and confession, and in petition and intercession engages us in a heavenly sphere where no prayer is too late, no plea is beyond help, and no sin from the past will condemn those whose names are written in the book of life from the foundation of the world (17:8). We are people of a land before time, and our destiny is a kingdom which shall not come to an end.

And on that note, let the game resume.