Well, good morning, Lighthouse. Did you come to worship the Lord this morning? Good. Come to bring glory to your God? Unto Him be glory in the church. That is one of our, why we live and why we breathe here. We are here to worship and honor the God of our universe. Glory to His name. Let's all stand and sing this morning. Click us in, Harley. Down at the cross where my Savior died Down where for cleansing from sin I cried There to my heart was the blood of life Glory to His name Glory to His name Glory to His name There to my heart was the blood of life. Glory to His name. I am so wondrously saved from sin. Jesus so sweetly abides within. There at the cross where we took the inn. Glory to His name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name Oh precious fountain that saves from sin I am so glad I have entered in There Jesus saves me and keeps me clean Glory to His name There to my heart was the blood of life. Glory to His name. Come to this mountain so rich and sweet. Cast thy poor soul at the Saviour's feet Punch Him today and be made complete Glory to His Name Glory to His Name Glory to His Name There to my heart was the blood of life Glory to His name Glory to His name Glory to His name There to my heart was the blood applied Glory to His Before you do get seated, we actually have a birthday coming up. She is turning four years old, and she happens to be my little baby girl. Naomi, happy birthday. You ready to sing happy birthday to you? Ready. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Naomi. Happy birthday to you. Are you so excited to be four years old? Some of us are excited. It's like four too fast. So you may be seated. Yeah, she's already four. All right, you may be seated. Well, welcome to Lighthouse. If this is your first time, I want to let you know that we do have The communication card here, if you have not filled that out, you can just fill that out. After the sermon, the offering plate will go around. Just drop that into the offering plate. We'll love to get in touch with you and thank you for coming to worship with us. Prayer requests that have been written on there as well. So please definitely drop those in the offering plate That will be led by since Jamie is not here Alvin. I'm counting on you to lead the prayer team today after church So he probably didn't hear me because he didn't hear anything, but it will go get it next time. I'm just playing with you Alvin so Glory to His name. So glory is talking about that honor, that recognition. So everything that we do in here, it's to be to the glory of God. Not anyone else here to receive the credit, not anyone here to receive the recognition, but Christ and Christ alone. As we have on our wall back here, unto Him be glory in the where? The church and we are in God's house today. We are in the church. We're here to bring glory to our God For his glory is the very reason even why he created this world Some of the time so I've been in some group sessions before and they try to speculate. Well, why did God create the earth? Why did God create mankind and all that and some have this mindset is well, it sounded pretty lonely and That's definitely not the reason. God did not create the world and all of us in it because He was lonely. God is self-sustaining and fully self-sufficient in the Trinitarian relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So in creating mankind, creating this world had nothing to do with loneliness. But creating this world and all of us in here was for His glory. We exist for His glory and we exist for worship. And if that's the case of why we exist, then where is our ultimate satisfaction with our God going to be found? It's going to be found with bringing Him glory, choosing to submit our lives to His will, submitting to live for Him. That is where true and real happiness is going to be found in this life and here. Because after all, if a painter paints a painting and then just sticks it in the closet, What so good is that painting? What is the art supposed to do? It's supposed to be displayed so people can see the works of the artist. Likewise, we exist because we're just supposed to be displaying and showing this world the glory of our God in us. And so if this is your first time here at Lighthouse, just want to let you know that we're thrilled you're here and we thank you for coming to worship with us today. We have a lot of people out sick today, including our senior pastor, including one of our deacons as well. But nevertheless, we're here to bring glory to our God. So please be lifting them in prayer as well. And so at this time, we take a pause reflection in our service to introduce a passage that we use and cling to here of when we bring our worship. It's found in 1 John 1 9. 1 John 1 9 tells us to the believers that if we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us for our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So we take the moment in our service to pray before our God, ask him to Forgive us asking to lift us up so that we can bring honor and glory in our worship to God from a pure heart So I would invite you to please pray with me as we continue our service Our Heavenly Father, we are so bountifully blessed, Lord, and thank you for being a God who's with us, Lord, and that we get to bring you glory here this morning as your body, Lord, and as your church. And so even as we know in Scripture, Lord, that you've created this world for your glory, and we also read in Isaiah as well that your glory will you not share with any other, Lord. So may we only keep you the focus and our attention of everything we do here, Lord, and every step and aspect of life lord that whether we eat or drink or whatever things that we do that we would do all to the glory of our god so lord thank you for for your love that is so powerful and it's been demonstrated by the cross lord and may we take all that love take all that light mercy and maybe all that in light of that mercy and may we be led by that lord may our hearts be led by mercy to this lost world that needs you more than ever before, Lord, with election season going on, with many of this country divided, Lord, but in your church, Lord, we are meant to be united and set that example before the world. So we thank you for our privilege we have to come before you that we get to do these things and not have to do these things out of habit or out of guilt or even out of fear, Lord, but that we do it out of love and we do it out of honor and service for you. Be with those and lift those who cannot be here this morning for whatever reason, whether it be illness or and capabilities of making it here. May your hand be upon them, Lord, and draw near to them as they draw near to you. We love you and thank you for being our God and giving us all the means to bring you worship. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. All right, let's continue to stand this morning. Come thou fountain, come thou king. Come Thou Fount of every blessing, to my heart to sing Thy grace. Streams of mercy never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise. Teach me some Meliodas sonnet, sung by flaming tongues above. Praise the mount thy fix appointed, mount of thy redeeming love. Come Thou Fount, Come Thou King, Come Thou Precious Prince of Peace, Here Your Bride to You we sing, Come Thou Fount of our Blessing. I was lost in utter darkness till you came and rescued me. I was bound by all my sin when your love came and set me free. Now my soul can sing a new song Now my heart has found a home Now Your grace is always with me And I'll never be alone Come Thou Fount, come Thou King Jesus Christ Jesus Christ Jesus Christ Jesus Christ Jesus Christ Jesus Christ to arrive at home. Come Thou precious Bread of Peace Hear Your pride, to You we sing Come Thou Fount of our blessing Gold to place on greater debtor Daily I'm constrained Find my wandering heart to lead. I'm prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it. Seal it for night. Come Thou King Come Thou Precious Prince of Peace Hear Your Bride to You we sing Come Thou Fount of our receipt Here's my heart Lord Take and seal it Seal it for Thy Christ alone, my hope is found He is my light, my strength, my song This cornerstone, this solid ground Firm through the force, it's strong and strong What heights of love, what depths of peace There's a field with shining sea I conquer my all in all Here in the love of Christ I stand In Christ alone The fullness of God in hell This faith, this gift of love Righteousness, scorned by the ones he came to save Till on that cross, as Jesus died The wrath of God was saddened On him was laid Here with the death of Christ I live Here in the ground His body laid Light of the world by darkness slain For I am His, and He is mine. Built alive, no fear in death This is the power of Christ in me From my church cry, Divine Obed Jesus commands my destiny No power of hell, no scheme of rent ever. Till he returns or calls me home Here in the power of Christ Oh Lord, my God, in You I put my trust Oh Lord, my God, in You I put my trust Oh Lord, my God, in You I put my trust Let the praises Oh Lord, my God, to you I give my hands Oh Lord, my God, to you I give my feet Oh Lord, my God, to you I give my everything Let the praises ring! Let the praises ring! I live and move and breathe When everything I say and do Begotten by my faith in you I lift up holy hands and say Let the praises ring Let the praises ring Let the praises ring All right, y'all be seated. Children in second grade and under in third through fourth, because it is the last Sunday of the month, you get to learn how to be big kids today. And sit here with us. Hey, it's on. I guess that means I got all you cheerings today, huh? Well, good morning, lighthouse. It's been a while. It's good to be standing up in front of you. It's good to see some visitors here today. You know, we're so blessed that you've chose to join us. You could have been anywhere in the world doing anything, and yet you chose to be here with us. And we just want you to know it's a blessing. We hope that you're blessed by being here and that you'll come back. I'm going to explain a little more about this in the sermon, but as you see the title up there, I was asked this a couple times by some people. And we were talking about the rapture and what was ahead for us. And they said, so I'm in heaven now. Now what? So we're gonna talk about this this morning. If you would, turn in your Bibles to Revelation chapter four, and we're actually gonna look at this whole chapter, but it's verses one through 11. And John is writing from the island of Patmos, and in verse one, he says, after this, I looked and behold, a door was opened in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me. which said, Come up hither, and I'll show thee things which must be hereafter. And I immediately was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on that throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone. And there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats, And up on the seats, I saw four and 20 elders sitting, clothed in white raiment, and they had on their heads crowns of gold. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices. And there were seven lamps of fire before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. And before the throne, there was a sea of glass like unto a crystal. And in the midst of the throne and round about the throne were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face of a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him, and they were full of eyes within, and they rest not day and night, saying, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. And when these beasts give glory and honor and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth forever and ever, the four and 20 elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and they worship him that liveth forever and ever, and they cast their crowns before the throne, saying, thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for thou has created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. Now, verse 1 of this passage shows John hearing the sound of a trumpet and a great voice calling him up to heaven. And immediately, the transition is made from earth to the heavens. And John is then given a view of what heaven will be like. Now, the verse we teach is a clear picture of the rapture. Now, let me stop here for just a second and clarify a few things. The second coming of our Lord is in view here. The second coming is a two-phase event. The first phase is pictured here and it relates to the rapture. Although the word rapture is not specifically used in the Bible, neither is grandfather. But it's certainly described. In fact, it's the next great event on the calendar. And it could happen at any moment. And it will happen suddenly. Paul tells us within the twinkling of an eye. And when it happens, all believers will suddenly be changed. We're gonna meet the Lord in the air. We're gonna be united with those that have gone before us. And we will be taken to heaven where we'll be rewarded and attend the marriage supper of the Lamb. Now the second coming or the return of Christ to earth happens later. And it happens towards the end of the tribulation. And the truth is we return with him. His foot will touch down on the Mount of Olives and it'll split in two. And we're gonna see all of the armies gathered in the Jezreel Valley at Armageddon. We'll then witness the Antichrist and the false prophet snatched up and tossed at great speed into the pit. Finally, we'll witness the Lord destroy all the armies gathered there and the valley will fill in blood up to a horse's bridle. One event, two separate phases. In one part, we meet the Lord in the air. The second part, we return with him to the earth. But here in verse one, John gives us a picture of what it's going to be like to be snatched out of this world and taken directly to heaven. It's going to be an amazing experience. However, As I said before we started, the question that's often asked by people regarding heaven is this, what are we gonna do when we get there? Now, and it's a good question. It's a question that people have asked for centuries. And it's a question that this passage begins to answer a little bit for us. For in the 11 verses that make up this chapter, we're given an opportunity to look into heaven, in fact, to the very throne room of God. And we're given this so that we can see some things that are going on there. And the things going on there are thrilling. But what makes them so special is the fact that they involve us. So this morning, let's take a few minutes and I want to join John in the very throne room of God. And I want to take some time to actually just peek behind the curtain to what will be going on in that place called heaven. And I believe this text gives us some of the answers to that question. Just remember, as we go through this, if you saved, we're looking into your future. If you're not, I'd encourage you to let us help you with it so that you too can do what we're going to do. So the question is, I'm in heaven, now what? Good question. Let's see if we can answer some of it right now. First off, you can examine the scenery of heaven, and you can see the sovereign. Look at verses 2 and 3. John says, I was immediately in the Spirit, and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and sardine stone. And there was a rainbow round about the throne in sight like unto an emerald. Now, of course, the most magnificent feature of heaven and the centerpiece of that city is going to be God himself. The one no man can see and live will be visible for all the citizens of that place to see. Revelation 22 verse four says it as clear as it can be said. It says, and they shall see his face and his name shall be in their foreheads. We're gonna see God someday. Look back at verse two and I want you to see his stability here. Verse two says, and behold, a throne was set in heaven and there was one that sat on that throne. So a throne being set speaks of his government. Our God rules an everlasting kingdom, and his kingdom is established, and his kingdom is stable. There's no one that can overthrow God. In fact, Psalm 47 verse 8 says, God reigneth over the heathen, God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness. Psalm 45 verse 6 it says thy throne on God is forever and ever and the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter Look at his symbolism here in verse 3 it says in it John goes on to describe he says and he that set was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone so John here he begins to try to do the impossible and And he tries to describe God. And he says, to look up on him was like a jasper and sardine stone. So the jasper stone, I had no idea what this was, but as I looked it up, I realized the jasper is describing like a diamond. It's brilliant and clear, yet it's hard and it's inflexible and it's firm. See, as we look at this, he's describing the moral law of God. There are certain fixed laws in the universe. Think about it. Law of gravity. If you don't believe in the law of gravity, just jump off a building and see what happens. I used to laugh and say, you know what, I'm not even scared of the fall because I can fly with the best of them. I just never could figure out how to land. the law of gravity, the law of thermodynamics. There's certain things that are fixed. And these laws, they're fixed and they're unbreakable, except by God himself. God's moral law, it's fixed and it's stable. And David wrote in Psalm 119, verse 89, he says, forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. So the Jasper stone pictures that. Then we have the sardine stone. Now, this is blood red. It's flashing. It's fiery. See, this stone pictures the holiness of God and His anger against sin. And it serves to remind us that God is holy and that He hates sin. He loves a sinner, but He hates sin. And just as the fires on the sacrificial altars of Israel were never to be extinguished, As long as sin inhabits this universe, that fire of God's hatred will burn against it. In fact, Hebrews 12, 29 says, our God is a consuming fire. Now, just as a side note here, these stones, they can also speak of the holiness of God, pure white like a diamond, as well as his redemption, red. For while God is a holy God who hates sin, He's also the same God who loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us on that cross. See, the sardine and the jasper stones were also, if you go back and you look in the Old Testament, they were the first and last stones in the breastplate of the Old Testament high priest. The sardine stone represented the tribe of Reuben. Reuben's name means, behold the Son. The Jasper stone represents the tribe of Benjamin, whose name means son of the right hand. So in those two stones, and on that breastplate, we see a portrait of our Savior, the Lord Himself. In His humanity, He's the divine Son, and He's seated at the Father's right hand. See, those stones can picture the completed work of the Lord Jesus for sinners. And they remind us that even though judgment is sure for those who are in their sins, there is grace and there's salvation for those who will embrace the gospel. In fact, after the rapture, in fact after the church is gone, It's the biggest evangelistic explosion to ever happen on the earth. There's 144,000 that are sealed. There's angels preaching the gospel from heaven. And there's a numerable company that have washed their robes. And John says, who are these? These are those coming out of the tribulation. Look at his serenity. It says in verse three, and there was a rainbow round about the throne in sight unto an emerald. Now, an emerald rainbow encircles the throne. That color speaks of serenity and calm. The rainbow is a symbol of mercy. Now think about this for just a second. In Noah's day, and in our day, we could only see half the rainbow. He didn't understand all that happened and why God did all that he did in the flood. Such is life for you and me. See, we go through these trials and we go through these struggles of life with only half the story. Rarely do we see the big picture. And we see God's grace and we experience His mercy in this life, but it's only in hindsight and sometimes not till later on will we ever see the big picture. But the truth is, one day, as we look and we see that rainbow completely encircling the throne, We can understand that one day we're going to be in his presence and it's going to make sense to us. First Corinthians chapter 13 verse 12 says, For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. And now I know in part, but then I shall know even as also I am known. In fact, Ephesians 2 says that in the ages to come, He's going to show us the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness towards us through Christ Jesus. See, when the storm has passed, the rainbow appears. And those of us that look for rainbows tend to see rainbows. But one day in heaven, the storms will have passed forever. And we're gonna be at peace in that city where all the mysteries of life are gonna be made clear. In heaven, not only will you see the sovereign, you can also see the saints. And it says in round about the throne were four and 20 seats. And upon the seats, I saw four and 20 elders sitting. See, heaven is not just a place for the Redeemer, it's also a place for the redeemed. And these 24 elders are pictures of the redeemed of all ages. 12 represent the Old Testament saints, and 12 represent the Church Age saints. And I want you to note here their position. It says they're seated. They too occupy thrones, which indicates that they're rulers here too. Look at Revelation 1.6. It says, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his father. To him be the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. See, the fact that they're seated lets us know that they're at rest. Their battles, they're over. And they find themselves seated before the throne of God at perfect rest and peace. And you know, I think God, a day of rest awaits for the heaven-bound saint today. One day we're going to actually be where we're positionally seated now. In fact, Ephesians 2 says, He's raised us up together and He's made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. We're there already. One day we'll be positionally there. Now I want you to look at their purity. It says, in round about the throne were four and twenty seats, in verse 4. And upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, and they're clothed in white raiment. Now these elders are clothed, are robed in white raiment, and this is always a symbol of holiness and purity. In fact, look at Revelation 19, verse 7. It tells us to be glad and rejoice and to give honor unto him for the marriage of the lamb is come and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. See, I thank God that there's a day coming when the saints of the Lord will be in his presence and they're going to be free from stain and the blight of sin. Now I want you to look back in verse four, and I want you to see their prize. Verse four, it says, and round about the throne were four and twenty seats, and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment, and they had on their heads crowns of gold. Now, each of these elders wears a crown of gold. Now, this crown is not like the crown Jesus wears. His crown is a diadem. And it refers to a king's crown. The elders are wearing what's called a Stephanos. And it's a victor's crown. It was given out to those who had earned it on the field of battle or in athletic games. It was what they were adorned with at the Olympic Games. And it was presented for a job well done. In fact, look at Hebrews 12. It says, we're foreseeing we are encompassed or encompassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses. Let us lay aside every weight and sin which does so easily beset us and let us run with patience that race which is set before us. And every one of us is running a race. And as we run this race, verse two says, we should be looking unto Jesus, which is the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Now, if we go through the New Testament, there's at least five crowns that are named there that believers can win. But the point here is that these elders have already been before the judgment seat of Christ, and they've been judged, and they've received their reward. See, there's coming a day when our service for Jesus will be recognized and rewarded. Now, you may not receive the accolades down here. In fact, nobody may ever tell you down here, good job. Nobody may appreciate the things you're doing, and nobody may even see the things you're doing down here. But the truth is, there is One that is taking notice and is seeing. And that one day, you can rest assured that the One that sees all will give you a crown over there. In fact, Galatians 6 and 9 encourages us. It tells us for those that continue to do this and sometimes don't feel appreciated at all, it says, let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. So my brothers and sisters, carry on for the glory of God knowing that one day He's going to say, well done. Now looking back to our text this morning, In heaven, you can also see the sights. Now we're in the very throne room of God, and it says, and out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices. See, John speaks of these lightnings and thunderings. Now, there's a lot of us here that just don't like thunderstorms. When the lightning starts popping and the house starts rattling with thunder, they're like a cat in a room full of rocking chairs, just absolutely nervous. And it tells us that heaven's gonna be alive and active and there's gonna be lightnings and thunders. And what this points to is the judgment that's about to be poured out on the world. See, heaven's not just a place of glory. It's a place where the power of God and His judgment on sin will be displayed as well. You can see the Spirit here. It says, "...and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God." See, the Holy Spirit that has indwelt us, and He's taught us, and He's led us, He's going to be there in heaven. And He's going to be there for us to see and to glorify. You know, it's going to be an exciting time to be in the presence of the One who's meant so much to us on this journey. Look at verse 6, and I want you to notice that you're also going to be able to see the sea. It says, "...and before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto a crystal." John says that there's a sea of glass before the throne. And this sea refers to an article in the tabernacle in the temple known as the laver. And the laver was, if you go back and you look, the laver was a bronze container that was placed outside the entrance to the tabernacle in the temple. And before the priests could enter, they were required to stop at the laver and they were required to wash themselves. Now you can read about this in Exodus chapter 30, verses 18 through 21. But the laver was a place that reminded the priest that he was a sinner and he had to cleanse himself before he could come into the presence of the Lord. Did you know that we have a laver too? We talked about it when we were singing the songs. See, 1 John 1, 9 is our laver. It says, if we confess our sins, He's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to clean us from all unrighteousness. You know, the truth is, I wash there several times a day. In fact, we can't enter into the presence of the Lord to worship or to pray effectively until we stop by the laver to wash up. See, because the sin that we carry just knocks us out of fellowship. David said in Psalm 66, he says, if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. You know, there's no reason for a believer to ever be out of fellowship with the Lord. You know, and because of 1 John 1, 9, I am really thankful I'm short. See, the short people, they're the last people to know when it rains. But you know what? The distance for me to restore my fellowship with the Lord is the distance from the knee to the floor. And the older I get, I'm more thankful that I'm short because I ain't got that far to bend. And the truth is, if we confess, He's faithful and just to forgive us 24-7, 365, forever. See, but I want you to notice something here. In heaven, notice that the sea has turned into crystal. You know, this signifies two things. And it brings us to two important truths. See, for the sinner, the time of repentance has almost run out. Of course, as I said, during the tribulation, it's going to be the biggest evangelistic movement that has happened. And there's going to be people being able, I believe, to trust in the Lord right up to the end. But what we need to see here is that there is a time where judgment is set and the time for the execution of God's sentence is at hand. There's going to come a point in time where it's just too late. For the saint, as we look at that sea of glass, we realize that because we've received our glorified bodies, the time of sinning has passed. We will have repented for the last time and will no longer be capable of sin. The time to make right, make things right with the Lord for both is right now. Don't let it sit. Don't let it fester. But not only can you examine the scenery, we can also enjoy the sounds of heaven. You know, growing up, and even today, there's some people that think in heaven, we're going to go around wearing dresses and playing harps and sitting on clouds and stuff. And they think it's all going to be quiet and proper and boring, kind of like going to the library forever. But they're so wrong. Heaven's going to be an active, joyous, vibrant. It's going to be loud. Heaven's going to be a place of worship and it's going to be a place of unrestrained, unashamed praise. Let's look at the source of the praise. Look at verses six, seven, and eight. It says, and before the throne, there was a sea of glass like unto crystal. And in the midst of the throne and round about the throne, there were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. And the first beast was like a lion. And the second beast was like a calf. And the third beast had a face as a man. And the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him, and they were full of eyes within. So John begins to describe these cherubim, or these four beasts, who are engaged in the ministry of praising the Lord. Now, the four beasts are some type of angelic creature. And many over the centuries have tried to figure out exactly what they represent. You know, some say they represent the four Gospels. The lion represents the Gospel of Matthew or the Gospel of the King. The calf represents the Gospel of Mark or the Gospel of the Servant. The man represents the Gospel of Luke or the Gospel of the Son of Man. The eagle represents the Gospel of John or the Gospel of the Son of God. Others, they say the beasts represent Jesus. The lion shows him to be king. The calf shows him to be a servant. The man shows his humanity. The eagle reminds us of his heavenly origin. And I think there's merit to any one of those theories, and I don't think it's something that we need to argue about. And I might as well tell you, being as I'm standing here, what I've come to believe about these beasts. And this is my opinion, not necessarily the opinion of White House Baptist Church or its subsidiaries. I mean, our lawyers need me to tell you that. But I believe they represent the totality of creation. The lion represents the wildlife. The calf, the domesticated animals. The man represents intelligent life. The eagle represents bird life. See, and all together, we look And it's an example of creation doing exactly what it was designed to do, which was bring glory to it.