Thou Art Worthy

Revelation 4:11 “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”

Background: The book of Revelation is filled with hymns of praise (Revelation 4:8, 11; 5:9-13; 7:12-17; 11:15-18; 12:10-12; 15:3-4; 16:5-7; 18:2-8; 19:2-6) which is significant knowing that John wrote this book to encourage people who were going through suffering and persecution. Revelation 4-5 opens a window to how worship occurs in heaven. John has entered heaven in Revelation 4:1, and by verse 10 he sees the four and twenty elders in unity as they cast their crowns of earthly achievement at the feet of Jesus Christ. They realize only He is worthy of the crowns. There is a strong emphasis in the church on witnessing for Jesus Christ and working for Jesus Christ but often not a lot about worshiping Him. As we memorize this verse, think of the scene around the throne and let our hearts rejoice over the fact that one day as His child we will all worship our glorious Savior!

“Thou art worthy, O Lord”

All creation greets our Lord God by acknowledging He is the One who sits on the throne exalted above all. When something other than God is giving us meaning in life, then we have an idol. Too often man worships creation instead of the Creator. Can we examine our hearts and truly call Him “Lord”? Our focus needs to remain on the Worthy One.

“to receive glory and honour and power”

To worship means “to ascribe worth” which results in using all we have and are to praise the Lord Jesus Christ for all that He is and does. Creation shouts to the heavens of His power, wisdom, and glory (Psalm 19). Our purpose is to glorify Him in everything we do. In our families, workplaces, and communities, our actions should reflect His character and bring Him glory. Why would we worship anything or anyone below God?

“for thou hast created all things”

The Creator God intricately designed every detail of this beautiful universe as well as every detail of each one of us. In Genesis, it tells us we were created in His image, and He called everything He made “very good” (Genesis 1:31). The fact that He created all gives Him complete rights and every claim over everything. He gave everyone a gift to use for Him which we are to use to fulfill His will for our lives.

“and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.”

Along with creation, we are part of God’s divine plan. We were created for His pleasure…but we are only giving Him pleasure if our hearts say, “Thou art worthy, O Lord.” We are unworthy of His love, grace, mercy, and redemption, yet He offers it freely. This was part of His plan before He ever created us.

Are we worshiping Him regularly? This can be simply added to our daily walk as we read/study our Bible and pray. Meditate on His attributes, sing a song or read a verse (Revelation 4:11!!) that praises Him. No matter if we are in the valley or on the mountaintop, we can and should praise Him because HE IS WORTHY!

“If you and I should walk into some great cathedral where they were singing and ask to be allowed to sing in the choir, they would ask whether we had ever learnt the tune, and they would not let us join unless we had. Nor can we expect that untrained voices should be admitted into the choirs above. Now, dear brothers and sisters, have you learnt to cast your crowns at the Savior’s feet already?

Charles H. Spurgeon

Dear Worthy One, I come before you in awe and reverence acknowledging your infinite worthiness to be praised. Teach me to live my life in a way that glorifies You. May my thoughts, words, and actions reflect Your character, bringing honor to Your name. Help me to live my life in a manner worthy of the calling I have received (Ephesians 4:1), always seeking to bring glory to Your holy name. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Reading and studying Revelation 4-5 will help us better understand how to worship God and give Him the glory He deserves. The theme of Revelation 4 is God the Creator while in Revelation 5 the elders praise God the Redeemer. The praise in chapter 4 is for the Father on the throne while for chapter 5 it is directed toward the Son (the Lamb) before the throne. The closing hymn, Revelation 5:13, is expressed to both, another proof of the deity of Jesus Christ.