Revelation 5 And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
3 And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
4 And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
7 And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
The lion of the tribe of Judah became the lamb that was slain for the salvation of the world. Could there be any greater dichotomous personality than Christ. He was humbled and born in a manger that He might be highly exalted above all. We often say that the greatest heroes are those with very complex diverse personalities. Yet, all human heroes pale in comparison to Jesus Christ. He embodied the perfection of all the best qualities despite their extreme diversity. Jonathan Edwards named these “diverse excellencies” and so perfectly described these characteristics of Christ in his sermon “The Admirable Conjunction of Diverse Excellencies in Christ Jesus” which I would highly recommend that you read it. The lion of the tribe of Judah who became the sacrificial lamb as depicted in Revelations 5. He, Christ, is the only one of the triune God-head filled with all majesty, power, dominion, and righteousness equal with God the Father who at the same time became flesh as a man to die and pay the price that Justice demanded. (Philippians 2: “Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. ”) For that reason Christ is the only one who can open the scrolls of judgment. So in His diverse excellences, He is perfect judge—respecting every law and carrying out the just penalty of the law with all its wrath and fury; while at the same time being perfect mercy and grace by accepting the full power of God’s wrath toward sin on Himself so that those who would accept His gift would be made righteous through faith. He is God in all his Holiness, Power, and Might. Yet, He chose to leave heaven with all its beauty to obediently come to earth in poverty, knowing that he would be rejected and ridiculed. The sea and the wind obeyed His voice. He raised Lazarus from the dead, healed the lepers, drove out demons; yet, He chose to die a cruel, humiliating death without opening His mouth except to ask the Father to forgive those who nailed Him to the cross. He was a man of great sorrow; yet, filled with Joy. He who “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made.” John 1: 1-3. This same Christ bowed down in reverence and obedience to the Father. He was royalty who chose to live in poverty among the “untouchables” and outcasts. He was perfect wisdom, who taught and still teaches with great patience a bunch of slow learners such as ourselves. He hated sin and all its effects on man; yet, He loved the sinner enough to offer to take His place. On this subject, I could go on writing for a lifetime and never complete the list of diverse Excellencies which are found in Christ Jesus. There was never one so worthy to receive only good; yet, so willing to patiently endure suffering and pain for our sake.
Many people who have not even come to accept Him as their Savior; still, see Christ and His life as inspirational. But the greatest, ultimate inspiration can only occur when one begins to see “though a glass dimly” the magnitude of His Glory. When we catch a glimpse of that beauty, the complete holiness of His character, and thus see a spark of that Glory which is only His; we must shudder at our own inadequacies. Our petty desires that the creature be more important than the creator glares back at us in the mirror. Our foolish, vain attempts to be or do anything of worth (in our own effort) lay before us like bags of rubbish with such foul stench that we are unable to bear the odor. As we begin to see our utter worthlessness before this Majestic God; we fall before Him, in worship. We must cry forth; “Holy, Holy, Holy…Lord God Almighty; Creator of Heaven and Earth.” It is in that moment that we understand He is worthy of our Praise; even if He gave us nothing in return but the eternal damnation that we so rightly deserve. There at that place do we cry out for the Mercy our pride-filled, arrogant, selfish hearts finally broken in despair to realize how foolish we are to desire anything more than we desire His presence or to look upon His face for an eternity. It is there that, Christ reaches down to say; “Come my child; I have paid the price for you. I desire that you come with me to share in my love, the love my Father has for me shall be yours. The Glory that is mine shall be yours. The Joy that is mine shall be yours. I took all your sin and all your guilt. I will clothe you with my righteousness forevermore. Yet, a little while and you shall be with me.” Such amazing love, undeserved then becomes the ultimate inspiration to drive the rest of your life. Such foolish creatures that we are, even then, we forget at times and we go about seeking our own desires and ever so gently He watches as we fall down. There He is to remind us that from that first moment that we chose Him; He never lets us go. He teaches us, loves us, and transforms us into someone who can one day see His Glory fully and share in that Glory.
If you wish to hear more about the paradoxes that make up Christmas, Christ, and the Christian life; I would recommend this sermon by Michael Youssef at http://www.leadingtheway.org/web/guest/home;jsessionid=A4568C70E870AC57A26A615BB7A0EC96
A copy of the sermon by Jonathan Edwards entitled, "The Admiral Conjunction of Diverse Excellencies in Christ Jesus" can be located at
http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/admirable.html
The following video worth watching…