The Lamb on the Throne
October 7
The Lamb on the Throne
"In a loud voice they were saying: 'Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!'"
— Revelation 5:12
Today's Story
Handel's Messiah contains one of the most famous moments in choral music: the Hallelujah Chorus, which crescendos into 'KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.' Handel reportedly told a friend: 'I did see all Heaven before me and the great God himself.' The oratorio was first performed in Dublin in 1742 to raise money for prisoners, the sick, and the poor. The first London performance prompted King George II to stand during the Hallelujah Chorus — a tradition maintained ever since. The worship of the Lamb is not merely aesthetic; it is political: the recognition of the true King over every earthly throne.
Reflection
Revelation 5:12 contains a sevenfold doxology — the most complete ascription of worth in the book of Revelation. Power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, praise — all belong to the Lamb who was slain. The paradox is essential: the Lamb (vulnerability, sacrifice) is on the throne (supreme authority). This is the center of Christian theology: power through weakness, glory through death, triumph through crucifixion. The worship of Revelation 5 is the response of the redeemed to the full recognition of what the cross accomplished. When you understand the full weight of the slain Lamb's achievement, every other worth-claim pales in comparison. Worthy is the Lamb.
Today's Prayer
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain — to receive all power, all honor, all glory, all praise. I add my voice to the ten thousand times ten thousand. Worthy, worthy, worthy. Amen.
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