Heavenly Music for Earthly Ears

3rd Sunday of Easter, 5/5/19
Revelation 5:11-14


Heavenly Music for Earthly Ears
I. A song of victory for the Lamb
II. A song of praise from all creation


I don’t think I’ve ever met two people with exactly the same taste in music. In fact, music tastes between two people—even two people who are close to one another—can vary widely. What one person considers the height of musical art, another considers to be nothing more than musical noise. What one person considers moving and provoking, another considers boring and mind-numbing. What one considers an expression of pure talent and musical genius, another considers to be mundane and even objectionable. It all depends on what you like to hear.

But now let’s move this conversation into the realm of your Christianity. As a Christian, what music do you like to hear or would you like to hear? Once again, that varies from one individual Christian to another. “I Am Jesus’ Little Lamb” is a favorite for one person, while the person sitting in the pew ahead of you would love to sing a hymn by Martin Luther such as “Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands.” It’s evidence that every one of us likes something a little different when it comes to Christian music.

So, what kind of music do you think will be playing in heaven? Which hymns will we sing when Jesus is seated in the center of heaven’s church? Who will make the hymn selections and what if you don’t particularly like what’s being sung? Will the music style be traditional or more contemporary?

Actually, there’s no reason for us to concern ourselves with such questions because we know that life in heaven will be perfect in every way, so our worship there will be perfect, too. But do you still wonder what heaven’s music will sound like?

Well, we don’t have the musical notes, but we do have the words that will be sung. John wrote them down for us here in Revelation chapter 5. John’s Revelation refers to angels and creatures singing. We can only imagine what John heard, but I’m certain it was unlike anything he had ever heard before because it was heavenly music. It was heavenly music and yet it was intended for earthly ears—for your ears this morning and mine. Let’s open our earthly ears to this heavenly music this morning and take to heart what this singing is all about.

Part I.

Permit me to ask you a couple more questions, but they won’t be related to your musical tastes. Here’s the first one: Are things getting better or worse in our world? And here’s the second: Are things getting better or worse in the Christian church? I imagine there’s a sizable number of you who are of the opinion that things are getting worse in both and you might even be able to point to physical evidence. There are senseless, violent murders occurring weekly in our world, and the church of today is rocked by scandals and shrinking numbers. It’s not a good time for either the world or the church. And yet you wouldn’t have to think very hard to recall a time when the world and Christianity were worse off than they are now.

And that’s why God gave St. John his Revelation. Revelation is filled with some frightening events that will occur in the world and in the church from the time Jesus ascended into heaven until the day he returns. God wanted Christians to know that there will be times when the church takes a pounding, especially from earthly powers and false Christian powers. It would be enough to make any Christian who seriously reads Revelation to think that there’s no way Christianity is going to last. It won’t be possible for it to withstand the assaults that are coming.

I’m sure the Apostle John felt that way. Of the twelve disciples, he was now the last one alive. The others had all been martyred, some violently so. He was blessed to be alive, although he was suffering in exile for his relationship to Jesus. No doubt he wondered how this whole Christianity thing would turn out. It wasn’t going well at the moment.

And it still isn’t. Look at our world. By most accounts it’s a mess. Violence. Corruption. Murder. Unspeakable acts against helpless people such as children.

Look at the church. The numbers don’t lie. Christianity in the US is on the decline. So is our own church body. And the projections tell us things will get worse over the next few years, not better.

So, is there anything a Christian can hold on to in such a brutal environment? Realistically, should we be filled with pessimism, if not despair? Does our God have anything to share with us to allay our fears and comfort our hearts?

Indeed, he does! Listen! He’s playing heavenly music for earthly ears. John wrote, “Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang: ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!’” I hear countless angels singing praises to the Lamb. Why to the “Lamb” and not “Jesus”? That name calls to mind the One who was sacrificed for our sins. If sin is our greatest problem, then forgiveness is our greatest need. The Lamb provided it by sacrificing himself on the cross. But he also rose from the dead and lives. Nothing can change that! Nothing can overpower him! Listen to the angels singing to him!

But in addition to seeing Jesus listening to the angels sing, do you recognize someone else? John refers to the “elders.” From the previous section we know that there were twenty-four of them. Why twenty-four and who are they? They are two sets of twelve, one from the Old Testament and one from the New. They represent all the believers both before and after Jesus was born, lived, died and rose again. In other words, this is the Holy Christian Church. And one of those believers in heaven is you!

You want to hear some good news in a world full of bad news? John sees you in heaven listening to the angels singing. Imagine that! Now that’s heavenly music for earthly ears. It’s a song of victory for the Lamb.

I have a few more questions. See if they sound familiar. “I’m so worried about tomorrow. What if things don’t work out for me? What will my life be like next year? Ten years from now? And what about my son? My daughter? What’s going to happen to him? To her? And it seems my health is slowly going downhill. What if I get struck with some terrible disease which can’t be cured? What can I expect before I hit 70? 80? Will I even make it to 90? Will I ever be able to repay my loans? Will I have enough money saved to retire?” Pretty unsettling, isn’t it? And I didn’t even ask about the things that other people might do to us, making our lives even more difficult. What should we do in the midst of so much trouble, so much uncertainty? Listen! Just listen! Can you hear it? It’s angels singing to the Lamb. After Jesus returns that’s exactly what those very two ears—one on each side of your head right now—will hear. The singing of angels will fill them because you’ll be there in heaven with all the other Christians enjoying life in the eternal presence of Jesus. You’ll be there with Jesus who sacrificed himself for your sins in order to redeem you—to make you his own forever. And because of his resurrection from the dead, we can be absolutely certain that’s what will happen. So just take a moment and listen to heavenly music for earthly ears—a song of victory for the Lamb.

Part II.

One of the psalms which we sing in worship is Psalm 148. It’s a psalm of praise, and in it, the psalmist encourages all people, all animals, all sea creatures, even things such as lightning, hail, snow, clouds, mountains, hills and trees to praise the Lord. Have you ever wondered about those words? How do inanimate things such as lightning, mountains and trees praise the Lord?

Before we answer that question, listen again to these words of John’s Revelation, “Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!’” The word translated “creature” is more literally translated “created thing.” In other words, all of God’s creation. Living things and inanimate things, like trees and rocks and rivers. What did John see and hear and what does it mean?

John saw all of God’s creation singing God’s praises. But just how is that possible from animals and inanimate objects?

The Bible clearly states that there will be a new heaven and a new earth after the Last Day. With our resurrected bodies we will live there in that new creation. And everything will be just as God created it to be—perfect. By their very perfect existence, trees and rocks and rivers will proclaim God’s praise because they will be doing exactly what God created them to do. Only God can do such a thing and that’s what makes him worthy of praise for ever and ever.

So now, let’s go back to our original concern. Things don’t look good for our world or God’s church. And I’ll bet there are more than a few things about your life today that aren’t going so well. So here’s my advice: Listen to the heavenly music with your earthly ears. It sings about an eternity when everything will join you in perfectly praising God. God’s solution to all of our problems was sacrificing Jesus on the cross for our sins. And then Jesus rose in glory to assure us that he did pay for all our sins and that heaven is our home. As you endure one of life’s troubles after another, he wants you to listen to the music of heaven and know for certain that one day you’ll experience it in person—with your risen and glorified body. The risen Jesus promises it. Now that’s music to our ears! Amen.