(Please read this Scripture passage first, before the homily.)
I just received a message with attachment from my sister. It is a picture of a church sign advertising that the “class on prophecy” had been cancelled “due to unforeseen circumstances.”
There are, however, no unforeseen circumstances in the Book of Revelation. Today we are taken up into heaven. It is a scene worthy of the prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel. It is a scene Cecil B DeMille would have liked to depict in one of his epic movies. It is a scene which neither J. R. R. Tolkien nor C. S. Lewis dared describe in their epics. It is a scene, however, which John did describe for us as a vision of heaven.
Picture a throne room made of all of nature’s most brilliant gemstones in a sea of light, so arranged so that each ray of light plays off each gem such that the beauty of light and beauty of jewel playing off each other display the great majesty of the One who sits upon the throne.
Picture the stars of the Zodiacs, both Northern and Southern, like twenty-four elders, giving glory, honor and thanks, to the Creator God who sits upon the throne. Picture the patriarchs of Israel and the patriarchal apostles of the Lamb, depicted as the constellations of the sky, glorifying God. Picture the four winds of the earth recognizing the magnificence of God. Imagine all the stars of the universe, all creatures of earth and all creatures of heaven and all time, past, present and future, exclaiming in perfect harmony the praise of the One who created all time, every creature and every mystic element of the universe.
It is this One Magnificent and Splendid God who sent his Son Jesus to reveal to his servant John, the message of this book entitled Revelation or Apocalypse. This One has no unforeseen circumstances and holds the key to knowledge and understanding. Here in this Revelation, we shall have answers to our unasked questions. Let us contemplate and marvel at the revelation granted us as we continue to probe the mysteries of the One who sits upon the throne and who holds the whole of creation in a firm and secure grip.