Dan. 7:9-10, “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire.
“A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened.
Rev. 4:1, After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.” 2 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne.
Rev. 15:2, And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God.
Heb. 12:29, For “our God is an all-consuming fire.”
Think about that image of the third heaven reality of the throne on fire, sitting on wheels of fire, and from that throne of fire, flows a river of fire, and according to Revelation 15:2 that river of fire flows into the sea of glass mixed with fire. Again, this is the reality of the throne room of God, and therefore the fire cant be the fire judgment, but instead, it is the fire of God’s fierce and endless burning love. God’s love is not something that is simply benevolent, instead, it is a vehement flame of holy passion, and compassion. A burning tenderness that so loves, even the broken and fallen, that he would give at the cross what he could not afford to give, but couldn’t help but give, because he was driven by the divine madness of burning love. When you see that verse in Hebrews that says “our God is an all-consuming fire,” that says a lot to me about that throne room picture. I believe the throne that is ablaze, and the wheels that are flames of fire, are because his presence, who is love, ignites everything around into flames. I believe the river of fire, and the sea of glass that’s mixed with fire all have their source from his very presence. That’s how all-consuming, and intense the fire of his love is. In light of that, notice what John saw in Revelation 4. He saw someone sitting on a throne, inviting him to step into the heavens, so that the one who was sitting on the throne could show him what must take place concerning the purposes of God on the earth, in the midst of the chaos of fallen mankind’s actions. There’s so much stuff here that we could go on and on endlessly, but the chief thing that I want you to see today is that God was inviting John to have a glimpse of God’s sovereign rule in the affairs of men. The Scriptures tell us that God orders our steps. I know there are a lot of things about God’s sovereign rule that no man understands, but understanding or not, the truth is that he is Lord of all. The fact that the throne from which he rules is on fire because he is on fire in love for us tells me that whatever else I do or don’t understand about his sovereign rule, it is driven by his all-consuming relentless love for us. The fact that his throne sits on a set of wheels speaks metaphorically to us that God’s sovereign rule, motivated and driven by his passionate love for us, is always turning in our direction, never missing anything, never allowing anything to get to us outside of his rule of love. Whatever you might be going through, the matter how confusing it might seem, or how painful it might be, know this; the God who is an all-consuming fire of love is ruling in your life from love that is specifically turned in your direction. He is in control, and the one who is in control is directly turned towards your life and your situation, and he’s not just exercising wisdom, but his sovereign rule in your life is driven by his love for you. There’s a lot you might not understand, but you can rest in this fact that the one who is Lord over your life specifically, and who is love, knows all the details of your future and your destiny, and his love for you, not the devil, is in control here.