Revelation 5: Why the Slain Lamb Is Worthy

Introduction

The week before, Vertical Nantes church contemplated Revelation 4: God in his glory, surrounded by angels and heavenly creatures who worship him. In chapter 5, the scene changes at once. The one seated on the throne holds a scroll sealed with seven seals, an angel asks in a loud voice who is worthy to open it, and a great silence falls over heaven. No one. John begins to weep.

"I love books, but I have never cried over a closed book," the preacher says with a smile. Yet behind this scroll lies a question that concerns us all: who is worthy to judge the world and to save it?

The answer comes in two images, a lion and a lamb. The preacher warns that the message will be "a bit heavier than usual" on the theological side, but he wants to show just how magnificent this text is. He looks at it like a painting seen from several angles, to understand why Jesus, and he alone, is worthy.

Message Outline

1. A Sealed Scroll, and No One Is Worthy

The book is actually a scroll, written on the inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals. In those days, with no email or phone, a document was sealed so that only its intended recipient could read it. In Revelation, the number seven speaks of totality and fulfillment: it is a complete secret.
To understand what it contains, we have to go back to the Old Testament (the preacher cites Ezekiel 2, Daniel 12 and Isaiah 29:11). This scroll holds God's plan, in two parts: to put an end to evil in this world and to save his people, restoring the broken relationship with human beings.
Being worthy means bringing two things together: credibility and ability. You must be credible enough to be entrusted with the task, and strong enough to carry it out. The preacher gives an example: if he invited himself over to your house to do the cooking, he would not be worthy of it, because he does not cook well. Here, it is not about cooking, but about the judgment of the world.
For John, exiled and persecuted for his faith, this is terrible news. Rome is "an iron fist in an iron glove" and Christians are marginalized. They wait for the return of Christ, it takes time, and the question rises: "How long, Lord Jesus?"
Who would be worthy to set himself up as judge of all of us? No one in the room, the preacher says, and not he either: we have all done wrong, and none of us is able to stop it in our own life.

2. A Lion Is Announced, John Sees a Lamb

Then comes the preacher's "favorite word" in the whole Bible: "but." One of the elders says to John: "Don't weep. Behold, the Lion who is of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome; he who opens the book and its seven seals" (Revelation 5:5).
John hears about a lion, an image of strength, a beast that amazes and terrifies at the same time. But when he turns around, he sees a lamb, the opposite image: gentle, endearing, weak. And this lamb looks as if it has been slain. It bears the marks of deep wounds.
This tension is at the center of Revelation and gives its key: Jesus is the lion, but a lion who draws his strength from being the lamb. He wins the victory not with fists, not by revolution, but by sacrifice.
It is also a Christian ethic: "We do not change the world by revolution or by force, but by sacrifice." The preacher invites us to keep this image in mind for our home groups.

3. The Victor Who Lived Your Life: Recapitulation

The word "victor" in Revelation does not only mean that Jesus won. The victor is the one who perseveres to the end, who makes no compromise, who stands firm until the finish.
Jesus is credible because he came to this earth and lived the same life as you and I, without ever sinning. God does not judge us from heaven without knowing what a human life is. Jesus knew hunger, thirst, tiredness, a little toe stubbed against a piece of furniture, but also rejection, contempt and hatred, all the way to death.
Theologians call this recapitulation. It was a Frenchman, Irenaeus of Lyon, about a hundred years after Revelation, who first put it into words. Jesus did not "teleport" himself to the cross at Easter to go straight back up to heaven: he obeyed from A to Z.
The titles "Lion of the tribe of Judah" and "Root of David" spoke powerfully to the Jews. They were waiting for a king like David, but better. David was the greatest king of Israel, and he sinned on the scale of his greatness. Israel had been chosen to show God to the world, and its history was more unfaithful than faithful. Jesus, a descendant of David, recapitulates that history.
"Jesus does not save us only by dying in our place, but also by having lived in our place." For 33 years he refused every compromise, and not for a single moment did he give in. Had he sinned, he would no longer have been credible as Savior.

4. The Lamb Who Conquered Death: Christus Victor

The Lamb should be dead: he was slain, the wound is deep. And yet he is standing, he is alive. He is so powerful that he has conquered death itself.
John knows very well that a lamb has two eyes and no horns. The seven horns and seven eyes are images taken from the Old Testament, notably from Daniel and Zechariah. The horn speaks of complete power, and the eyes say that the Lamb, filled with the Spirit of God, sees everything that happens on earth.
This is what our human justice lacks, even with good intentions: we do not have all the facts and we do not know every heart. We need someone who sees everything, who knows how to take everything into account and who has the strength to render justice.
Theology calls this "Christus Victor," Christ the Victor. The early Church understood it: when Jesus enters death, he does not enter it as a victim but as a conqueror. The preacher admits the image is imperfect, but he brings up the Trojan horse: the Greeks pretend to have lost and enter the city through that horse. By his death, Jesus enters the realm of death in order to conquer it. He holds the keys of death (Revelation 1:18), as if he had broken down the door saying: "From now on, this is my place."
The preacher makes a confession: when facing his own difficulties, he often pictures them as an arm-wrestling match with Jesus. "That is not the case. Jesus has won. There is no match." How many of us are afraid of something whose keys Jesus holds? For the Christian, death is only a door to eternity, and Jesus can come and get us even there.

5. Slain in Your Place: Penal Substitution

The living creatures and the elders sing a new song: "You are worthy to take the book, and to open its seals: for you were killed" (Revelation 5:9). He is worthy because he was slain.
In Leviticus, sacrifices were first of all a way of saying thank you to God, often with food or drink. But when someone had sinned, God asked for an animal to be put to death. It is not pretty, and that is intended: sin is serious, God is holy, evil cannot remain in his presence, and its consequence is death.
For a Jew of that time, this lamb may have been seen being born, bottle-fed, weaned, and children had played with it. It was brought to the temple, a hand was laid on it to say: the sentence meant for me falls on this creature. Then the priest slit its throat.
This is what Jesus did. He was completely innocent, like the lamb, and he chose to take the punishment we deserved. It is called penal substitution: he takes my sin and gives me his life in exchange. As a child, the preacher would never have agreed to take the punishment his sister had well deserved. Jesus did it for human beings who often could not care less about him.
In the past, it took one animal for one sin, for one person. But how do you measure the life of God? This unique sacrifice in history is enough for any person, whatever they have done, to be forgiven.
This gives assurance in our relationship with God. Hebrews invites us to approach the throne of grace with confidence (Hebrews 4:16), and Romans 8:1 declares: "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." If Christ has paid it all, there is no wrath of God left against you.
Substitution answers the problem of justice. Before a judge, you can say you did not mean to drive too fast; he may believe you and be ready to forgive you, but a fine is still to be paid. We are uncomfortable with the idea that God judges us, but very comfortable with the idea that he judges others, and many ask: "If there is a God, why is there evil?" Jesus came to solve this problem: every sin, whatever it is, can be wiped away.

6. Redeemed to Reign: Redemption

The song continues: "and bought us for God with your blood, out of every tribe, language, people, and nation" (Revelation 5:9). Jesus bought.
We have to put ourselves back in that time. Today, in the West, slavery no longer exists, and thank goodness. But it was the norm everywhere, and in Rome more than anywhere. The image is that of slaves changing owners.
Jesus does not buy us in order to enslave us, nor to let us do whatever we want. Verse 10 says it: "You made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God." He wants to adopt us and make us a people in relationship with God. "If you believe in Christ, you are noble."
This touches the big questions of identity: where I come from, who I am. For some, they are easy. For others, they are painful. Jesus tells you: "I don't only want to save you from death, I want to give you a new identity." If you are a Christian, God no longer sees you as a sinner, he sees you as a child.
And the end of verse 10 announces the program for eternity: "they will reign on the earth." No little clouds, no boredom in paradise. If we are of royal blood, we will have to reign.

7. The Worship the Lamb Deserves

From verse 11, everything changes scale. Myriads of myriads of angels say with a loud voice: "Worthy is the Lamb who was killed to receive the power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and blessing!" (Revelation 5:12). Then every creature, in heaven, on earth, under the earth and in the sea, joins them.
In chapter 4, the most powerful beings in the universe worshiped God the Father. In chapter 5, the entire cosmos worships Jesus Christ as God. A Christian is not just someone who believes that God exists: he honors Jesus Christ as he honors God. "Faith is not a mental exercise. The question is: before whom do you bend the knee?"
In this song, the worshipers do not talk about themselves. Even the parts that concern them speak first of Jesus: it is not "I am chosen," it is "he chose me"; not "I am saved," but "he saved me." The preacher, picking up what had been said the week before, is concerned about the number of "I"s in our songs: "If your favorite songs are only 'I, I, I, I,' there is a problem with your playlist."
The destination of worship is to say to God: "You are worthy." It is no longer about me, but only about him. Coming to church is not just being physically present, it is coming to meet God before his throne, and not only because the music is catchy or because you prefer the old hymns.
The message ends with communion, with four reasons to come forward: someone lived the life I could not live; he loves me so much that he conquered death so that we would never be separated; he knows the worst of what I have done and chose to die in my place; in him, I am redeemed, I am no longer a sinner but a child of God. The preacher invites us to take the elements only if it makes sense, out of a movement of the heart and not out of habit.

Key Takeaways

Being worthy means being both credible and capable. No one but Jesus can judge the world and save it.
Jesus is the Lion of Judah, but he wins the victory as a lamb, through sacrifice and not through force.
Jesus saves you by dying in your place, but also by having lived in your place, without ever sinning.
By his death and resurrection, Jesus conquered death, took your punishment and bought you back to make you a child of God.
Christian worship is centered on Jesus Christ: it says "You are worthy" more than it talks about us.

Personal Application

In what difficulty are you living your relationship with Jesus as an arm-wrestling match, when he has already won?
What are you afraid of that Jesus already holds the keys to?
Do you approach God fearing his wrath, or with the assurance of those for whom there is no longer any condemnation?
How does being a child of God, redeemed and called to reign, change the way you see yourself?
In your worship, who is at the center: you or him? What can you change to come to the service with a prepared heart?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the sealed scroll of Revelation 5 contain?

According to the preacher, who draws on Old Testament texts such as Ezekiel 2 and Daniel 12, the scroll contains God's plan in two parts: to put an end to evil in this world and to save his people. The seven seals speak of a complete secret that no one can open without being worthy.

Why does John see a lamb when a lion is announced to him?

John hears about the Lion of the tribe of Judah, an image of strength, then he sees a lamb that looks as if it has been slain, an image of weakness. This is the key to the whole book of Revelation: Jesus is the lion, but he draws his strength from being the lamb. He wins the victory through sacrifice, and not through force or revolution.

Why is Jesus the only one worthy to open the scroll?

Being worthy means being credible and capable. Jesus is credible because he lived an entire human life without sinning and died in our place. He is capable because he conquered death and bought for God people from every tribe, language, people and nation.