In his book, The Ultimate Priority, Pastor John MacArthur opens with a unique story of worship gone crazy. Maria Rubio said she was frying tortillas when she noticed that the skillet burns on one of her tortillas resembled the face of Jesus. Excited, she showed it to her husband and neighbors, and they agreed. So she went to her priest to have the tortilla blessed. She testified it changed her and her husband saying she was more peaceful, happy and submissive since the tortilla had arrived.  The priest, not accustomed to blessing tortillas, reluctantly did so.

She took the tortilla home and put it in a glass case with piles of cotton to make it look like it was floating on clouds, built a special altar for it, then opened the shrine to visitors. Within a few months, more than 8000 people came to the shrine of the Jesus of the Tortilla.

It seems incredible to me (to us) that this could actually happen. But there have been other instances as well. Images of Jesus in toppings of pizza. Scorched etchings on toast. Spot on a garage floor. Burn marks on a grilled cheese. We roll our eyes and cluck at the gullibility of people.

The final section of Revelation 5, verses 9-14, is full of hymns and is focused on worship. This final sermon in the first section of my series on Revelation will close the door on the whole idea of worship which is taking place in heaven and which John gets to witness. After this (beginning in chapter 6) things change.

We will focus on worship in heaven. We will also focus on worship as it takes place here on earth. Please join me in person or via live stream.

Next week begins a two month series I’ve titled To and From the Cross. More on that next week.