Rev. 4; Psalm 37:1-8

Rev. 4
The central point of this chapter is the throne of the Lord God Almighty. We have seen what is around the throne, and today we will notice what proceeds from the throne and what stands before the throne.

FROM the throne:  v. 5  "From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder." These images can represent only one thing--a storm! This indicates a coming storm of judgement. Though God is gracious and merciful, He is also just, and He warns that He will judge sin. These images also show us God's awesome power. Think how small and helpless you feel when in the midst of a severe thunderstorm.

BEFORE the throne: vv. 5-6  "Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God. Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal."
The seven lamps represent the perfect and complete Holy Spirit. The sea of glass represents God's holiness.

Psalm 37:1-8
This is a psalm of contrasts--primarily between the wicked and the righteous. In these first verses, we will look at what we as believers should NOT do and what we SHOULD do.

What we should NOT do:

• "Do not fret because of evil men." v 1  In this day of 24-hour news, it seems that we know a lot about evil people. We should not fret, stew, or worry about them.
• "Do not...be envious of those who do wrong." v. 1 
• "for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.
• "Do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes." v. 7
• "Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;" v. 8
• "Do not fret--it leads only to evil" v. 8 Wow! This is the third time in 8 verses, that we are warned not to fret. So let's get the message; don't fret!

What we SHOULD do:

• "Trust in the Lord..." v. 3 So much here even in these 4 words. What does it mean to truly TRUST the Lord? We put out complete trust in a bridge when we walk or drive over it. We trust our chairs that they won't collapse under our weight. These are rather crude examples because, of course, the bridge or chair COULD fail, but God CANNOT fail. We can trust Him completely and we should.
• "do good" v. 3
• "dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture" v. 3 Be content where God has placed you.
• "Delight yourself in the Lord." v. 4 I'm not sure I can exactly explain this phrase. For me it means meditating on His Word, taking my burdens to the Lord in prayer, trusting Him, fellowshipping with God's people, serving others, doing His will in the place He has put me, trusting Him to bring my will in line with His... Perhaps you can expand on this a little because the rest of the verse reads, "...and he will give you the desires of your heart."
• "Commit your way to the Lord;" v. 5
• "Trust in him." v. 5
• "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;" v. 7 This is very hard for 21st century Americans. We don't take much opportunity to be still except when we fall exhausted into bed at night! And we are not a patient people. Let's work on this one!