In the movie Wayne’s World, Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar produce a television show on a low-range public access station. A Chicago network television station, however, decides to hire the two men to broadcast their program to a much larger audience. Suddenly, their lives are changed as they begin living the dream.
In one scene, the two misfits attend a rock music concert performed by Alice Cooper (incidentally, you ought to read about this man. He’s not what most people think). Afterward, they’re ushered backstage where they meet their hero. After paying their respects, the rocker invites them to hang out with him.
How do they respond? Click on the above video and find out.
You might be interested to discover that we’re all a lot more like Wayne and Garth than we’d like to admit. And in many ways, this scene from Wayne’s World gives us a glimpse into heaven.
Please join us as we explore what Wayne, Garth, and Alice Cooper tell us about God and us in our daily Bible conversation.
TODAY’S READING
Obadiah 1:1-21
Revelation 4:1-11
Psalm 132:1-18
Proverbs 29:24-25
INSIGHTS AND EXPLANATIONS
Obadiah 1:1-21. We don’t know much about the prophet Obadiah—especially since it was such a common name at that time. He either lived in the time of Elisha (850 B.C) or Jeremiah (600 B.C.). Because Obadiah 1-6 correlate very closely with Jeremiah 49:9-16, most scholars believe he was likely a contemporary of Jeremiah.
Psalm 132:1-18. This beautiful psalm is based on 2 Samuel 7 when King David began making plans to build the temple only to be rebuffed by God because he had too much blood on his hands.
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THE WORD MADE FRESH
Imagine meeting your greatest hero. How would you respond? Would you be nervous? Would you drop to your knees like Wayne and Garth chanting, “We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!”?
In our study of Revelation, John’s apocalyptic vision moves from earth to heaven. As God is seated on his throne, the 24 elders and 4 living creatures worship him night and day. Over and over the 4 living creatures hover around the throne repeating these words:
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.
Revelation 4:8
At the same time, the 24 elders kneel before God saying,
You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.
Revelation 4:11
It’s reminiscent of Wayne and Garth when they met Alice Cooper, isn’t it?
Scholars differ on the identity of the 24 elders. Some speculate that they are angelic beings, others believe they represent the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 disciples, still others believe they represent the church. Prophetic visions in Scripture are often murky, which tells me that precision regarding the details aren’t important. What’s important to us in this passage is that heavenly beings surround the throne, worshiping God. And someday we will join the elders and 4 living creatures worshiping him as well.
Does this sound boring to you? Is God nothing more than a glorified megalomaniac?
I don’t think we have an inkling of an idea of how great is our God. If we really saw him as he is, we would drop to our knees and join the elders and 4 living creatures. God is that BIG! He is that much GREATER than us.
It’s no mistake that before the conflict of the ages unfolds in Revelation, we begin with a vision of God seated on the throne. And what are the 4 living creatures and 24 elders saying? That God is great, he created all things for himself, and all life comes from him and exists for him. He is holy and his reign never comes to an end. Not for a moment has his reign decreased, faltered, or diminished.
In the midst of John’s exile in Patmos, God is still seated on the throne.
In the midst of the conflict of the ages, God is still on the throne. Midway through the Revelation when the beast is released and anyone without his identifying mark is killed, God is still on the throne.
God is still on the throne. He was, and is, and is to come.
If you sincerely believed that God is on the throne, that he understands every detail about your life, he cares about you, and he is in total control of everything on earth, how would you live your life? If you truly understood his enormity, his infiniteness, and your utter dependence on him, how would it affect your reaction to the everyday surprises and pains?
In the midst of John’s vision, did it appear that God’s power had waned? Yes. But reading the book of Revelation, from our vantage point, we know that everything worked out for the good. God really did know what he was doing. And someday, we will look back at our lives on earth, much like reading the book of Revelation, and we will understand.
God intimately knows what he’s doing with your life. You can trust him, even in the midst of confusion and suffering.
CONVERSATION STARTERS
- What spoke to you in today’s reading?
- If you sincerely believed that God is on the throne, that he understands every detail about your life, he cares about you, and he is in total control of everything on earth, how would you live your life?
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Michael co-pastors The Neighborhood Church with Eugene Scott in Littleton, Colorado.
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