Revelation 4-5

“Who is in control?”

Scripture passage: Revelation 4-5

NOTE to leaders: I suggest using the New Living Translation (NLT) version of the Bible while teaching as it’s easier for children to understand. Keep in mind that it’s best to stay consistent with the version of Scripture used with the children each week.

Key Points: 

• God is sovereign and is ruling. He is on His throne in heaven.
• Jesus is God’s Son and is with His Father. There is a problem that no one can solve apart from Jesus.

Intro activity: As children arrive, give notecards or paper to each child. Ask them to write down (or draw pictures to represent) some of the messages that Jesus gave the churches in last week’s lesson. They should give these lists or drawings to their leaders before the class begins.

Preparation before class:

• Gather the needed supplies.
• Plan the game you will use to help the children learn their memory verse.
• Prepare and hide the clues for the treasure hunt.
• Place treats inside a treasure box (or lock box), and give the key to a leader.

Supplies Needed:

• Paper or notecards
• Markers, crayons or pens
• Any objects or costumes you may want to use to help recreate the scene of God in heaven
• White board & markers (for memory verse)
• NLT Bibles
• Treasure box or lock box with a key
• Treats (to fit in the box)
• Clues for the treasure hunt (see details below under the treasure hunt activity)
• Treasure hunt objects: fruit, wool/cotton, cross, stone
• Paper (for creating the songs)
• Audio recorder (for the songs)
• Prizes for learning the memory verse

Class agenda:

Pray (or allow a child to pray) for today’s lesson and for God to teach us His Truth.

Review:

Review the memory verse from last week: Revelation 3:21.

“Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne.”

(Revelation 3:21, NLT)

Review what the children learned from last week’s lesson: Revelation 2-3.

• Key points:
  • Jesus overseas all the churches and sees all that we do
  • What is Jesus saying to your church? What are the strengths and weaknesses in the children’s class/ministry?
• What are some of the messages that Jesus sent to the churches?
  • Love Jesus first – above everything
  • Do not be afraid to follow Jesus
  • Follow Jesus’ truth and do not listen to lies
  • Stay faithful to Jesus even when our friends live in sin and do bad things
  • Wake up and turn toward Jesus – be truthful with our worship of Him
  • Stay strong in our faith and hold on to Jesus
  • Admit the wrong things we do and invite Jesus into our lives
• Who remembers what the word “revelation” means? (The dictionary says that revelation is the act of revealing or disclosing something – especially something you didn’t realize before. In the Bible, the book of Revelation begins with “This is a revelation from Jesus Christ.” So the book of Revelation is just revealing who Jesus is more fully.)
• Who remembers the name of person who received Jesus’s revelation and was told to write it down for us? (John – one of Jesus’s disciples)

Today we’re going to hear about what John saw in heaven – about how God the Father is on His throne and being worshipped. God’s Son, Jesus, is with Him and is the only one who can solve a difficult problem. Jesus is also praised and worshipped because of who He is and what He has done.

Use a storytelling method of telling the children about the worship of God in Revelation 4:1-11. In this lesson, it would be best not to read the story straight from Scripture. Learn the story, and tell it to the children in a way that they can understand and remember. If possible, make it interactive.

“Then as I looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me like a trumpet blast. The voice said, ‘Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after this.’ And instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne in heaven and someone sitting on it. The one sitting on the throne was as brilliant as gemstones—like jasper and carnelian. And the glow of an emerald circled his throne like a rainbow. Twenty-four thrones surrounded him, and twenty-four elders sat on them. They were all clothed in white and had gold crowns on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning and the rumble of thunder. And in front of the throne were seven torches with burning flames. This is the sevenfold Spirit of God. In front of the throne was a shiny sea of glass, sparkling like crystal. In the center and around the throne were four living beings, each covered with eyes, front and back. The first of these living beings was like a lion; the second was like an ox; the third had a human face; and the fourth was like an eagle in flight. Each of these living beings had six wings, and their wings were covered all over with eyes, inside and out. Day after day and night after night they keep on saying, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty— the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come.’ Whenever the living beings give glory and honor and thanks to the one sitting on the throne (the one who lives forever and ever), the twenty-four elders fall down and worship the one sitting on the throne (the one who lives forever and ever). And they lay their crowns before the throne and say, ‘You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.’”

(Revelation 4:1–11, NLT)

• Be descriptive when storytelling so the children can picture the scene.
• Consider having the children help recreate the scene in your classroom. Use a leader to represent God on His throne, and allow the children to represent everyone else.
• Perhaps you can have the children (in smaller groups) draw pictures of the scene. (For older children, have them use their Bibles to refer back to the descriptions/passage.) Emphasize that the children should only draw what is actually said in Scripture. They shouldn’t add details to the scene that are not in God’s Word. Share these pictures with the larger group.

Memory verse: Revelation 4:11

Share the memory verse for this week. (For older children, have them look up the memory verse in their Bibles. Once everyone has found the verse, have one of the children read it out loud.) Discuss the meaning of the verse, and play a game to help the children remember it.

“You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”

(Revelation 4:11, NLT)

Continue reading (or storytelling) Revelation 5:1-4. Answer any questions the children may have about this Scripture passage. Don’t be afraid to let the children know if you don’t know the answer.

“Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who was sitting on the throne. There was writing on the inside and the outside of the scroll, and it was sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel, who shouted with a loud voice: ‘Who is worthy to break the seals on this scroll and open it?’ But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll and read it. Then I began to weep bitterly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll and read it.”

(Revelation 5:1–4, NLT)

Activity (“Treasure Hunt”): Using a treasure hunt, you will help the children find the answers to the questions below. As you set up the problem (the spiritual condition of people) that only Jesus can solve, focus on the Gospel message – Jesus’s death and resurrection. Use stories the children have already learned to help lead them through the treasure hunt. Show them a treasure box that is locked. It should be filled with treats for the children. The purpose of the treasure hunt is to find the key that opens the box.

Sample treasure hunt clues:

1. Introduction to game
   • What does it mean to be “worthy?” (to have value; to be good enough; to be deserving)
   • Creation: God created the world – including man and woman, and He said that everything He made was good. Have the children tell you what they can remember about the Creation story. So if God said that every thing He made was good … why are we now told that no one can be found who is worthy? To find the answer … follow the clue.
   • CLUE #1: (For younger children) – “It rhymes with boot and is good to eat.” (For older children) – “It is said that one a day keeps the doctor away.”
   • Hide the second clue under a piece of fruit (or apple) somewhere in the room.
2. Why is there no one who is found worthy?
   • Fall: The first man and first woman – Adam and Eve – disobeyed God. How did they disobey God? Why did God tell them not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? What was their punishment? Be sure to emphasize that their actions brought sin into the world. What does this mean for us? (We are separated from God.) How can we find our way back to God?
   • CLUE #2: “Baa, baa, black sheep …” (the nursery rhyme continues with “have you any wool”)
   • Hide the third clue under some wool/cotton somewhere in the room.
3. How can we find our way back to God?
   • Jesus’s birth: We are told that Jesus is the Promised King who will help us find our way back to God. Why did God send Him to earth as a baby? Why do you think He was born in a barn with the sheep and cows and donkeys? What are some things Jesus taught people when He grew up?
   • CLUE #3: “A-B-C-D-E-F-G, Jesus died for you and me. H-I-J-K-L-M-N, Jesus died for sinful men, Amen! O-P-Q-R-S-T-U, I believe God’s Word is true. V-W, God has promised you … X-Y-Z, new life instead!”
   • Hide the fourth clue behind a cross somewhere in the room.
4. Who is the only One who is worthy? Why is He worthy?
   • Jesus’s death: Since Jesus is God’s Son and is perfect, why did people want to kill Him? Why did God allow Him to die on a cross? Did Jesus want to die? How does Jesus’s death bring us closer to God? Be sure to emphasize that only Jesus could remove our sins and provide a way to have a relationship with God the Father. That is why Jesus is the only One who is worthy.
   • CLUE #4: “It covered the grave, but could be rolled away.”
   • Hide the fifth clue under a stone somewhere in the room.
5. Why did Jesus come back to life? What does this teach us about Him?
   • Jesus’s resurrection: Jesus is alive! He has victory over sin and death. This proves that He is really God’s Son. Not even the grave could hold Him. Jesus is alive, and now we can also have new life in Him. Because He is worthy, He is the only One that can open the scroll. Jesus is the key that we need to unlock the treasure – the promise of eternal life for those who believe.
   • CLUE #5: (Create a brief rhyme or clue that leads the children to the leader that holds the key. Perhaps use a word or phrase that rhymes with that person’s name.)
   • The key to the treasure chest should be in a leader’s possession. The final clue should lead them to that person.
   • Before opening the treasure box, explain the symbolism (below).

Explain the symbolism used in the treasure hunt. The treasure box represents Jesus’s free gift to anyone who searches for Him, finds Him and chooses to believe in Him. The key represents Jesus – the only one who is worthy to give the treasure to us. He can open the box, because of the price He paid for us. He is the key – they only way to come to the Father in heaven (John 14:6). The treasure/treat represents God’s promise of eternal life for those who believe in Jesus and follow Him.

 Open the treasure box and allow each child to have a treat. While the children are enjoying their treat, reread Revelation 5:1-4 and continue reading through the rest of the chapter: Revelation 5:5-14. Emphasize how Jesus is worshipped through songs.

“Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who was sitting on the throne. There was writing on the inside and the outside of the scroll, and it was sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel, who shouted with a loud voice: ‘Who is worthy to break the seals on this scroll and open it?’ But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll and read it. Then I began to weep bitterly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll and read it. But one of the twenty-four elders said to me, ‘Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne, has won the victory. He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals.’  Then I saw a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing between the throne and the four living beings and among the twenty-four elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which represent the sevenfold Spirit of God that is sent out into every part of the earth. He stepped forward and took the scroll from the right hand of the one sitting on the throne. And when he took the scroll, the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they held gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. And they sang a new song with these words: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth.’ Then I looked again, and I heard the voices of thousands and millions of angels around the throne and of the living beings and the elders. And they sang in a mighty chorus: ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered— to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.’ And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea. They sang: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.’ And the four living beings said, ‘Amen!’ And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped the Lamb.”

(Revelation 5:1–14, NLT)

Activity (create a worship song): Divide the children into groups and let them create a song of worship and praise to Jesus. They can make up a new song and tune or they can create new words to a tune they’re already familiar with. Let them share these with the rest of the group. If possible, use an audio recorder to record the tunes and praise songs the children create. If there is time, let them create actions to accompany the songs.

Allow children the opportunity to say the memory verse. Optional: Give prizes to anyone who can retell the memory verse without assistance.

Take-home: Provide a short handout for parents to tell them what the children learned today and their memory verse.