Rev.5:5,6 – And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
This passage describes the conflict that permeated this scene in heaven. No man from all of the the prophets up to the present day could answer the dilemma that engulfed fallen man. John was weeping in desperation when one of the elders around the throne began to cry out, “Don’t weep John, the Lamb of God has prevailed”. Then John looked and saw not a Lamb but the Lion of the tribe of Judah. This will be our very own experience when we step over into eternity. I’m not quite sure what will be more breathtaking, the humility of Christ in His human nature or the glory of the Son of God sitting on the throne. Here is something Jonathan Edwards said about this scene.
“He appeared as a lamb in the hands of his cruel enemies; as a lamb in the paws, and between the devouring jaws of a roaring lion; yea, he was a lamb actually slain by this lion: and yet at the same time, as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, he conquers and triumphs over Satan, destroying his own devourer; as Samson did the lion that roared upon him, when he rent him as he would a kid. And in nothing has Christ appeared so much as a lion, in glorious strength destroying his enemies, as when he was brought as a lamb to the slaughter: in his greatest weakness, he was most strong.”
Jonathan Edwards preached a most amazing sermon called the ‘Excellencies of Christ’ from this passage, highly recommended sermon. In it he described the amazing contrast that we see in the humanity and deity of Jesus, Son of God and Son of Man. We see His utter dependence on His Father and at the same time His sovereignty as He rules all things by His word. We see His humility cloaked in His humanity and at the same time His radiant glory as the Son of God. I think this will be the most amazing thing about heaven, the mystery of God seen in the humanity and deity of Christ.
