Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.” – Revelation 4:8

Today’s Scripture Reading (March 18, 2015): Revelation 4

We are shaped by our history and what we know. As I read the book “Heaven is for Real” a while back, one of the things that struck me was that everyone was walking around in robes, and being a bit of a rebel, the questioned that burned on my mind was – why? It was a question that I asked again a month and a half ago as I stood in line trying to rent a car behind too Christian Church leaders also in robes – one black and one white. Why? I get that Jesus dressed in a robe of sorts while he was on the earth (despite one pastor insisting in a sermon that Jesus wore pants – but I digress) but that was the fashion trend in Jesus day. A common person would not wear a robe today, but that could not be said in Jesus day. I wore bell bottom jeans which completely enveloped my platform shoes back in Junior high, but I don’t own a pair of either the jeans or the shoes today because I would look silly in them.

The truth is that whether or not the events in the book “Heaven is for Real” are true, the symbolism used is at least partially what the child, or the father, would expect these things to be used. It grounds the story in the realm of our experience, after all, because Jesus wore a robe on earth, we all wear robes in heaven. It makes sense. But here we need to be careful, because it may not be true. God seems to enjoy working through our expectations and there are several stories that God uses to get a point across that cause us to shake our heads today, but we also know that the experience of heaven is too grand to be summed up in the pages of a little book – or a big book for that matter.

And this is true of the prophecy contained in the Book of Revelation. The imagery that John uses, or maybe more precisely that God uses with John, is clearly something that John understands because he has read it before. This verse itself is heavily influenced by two extremely important texts from the Hebrew Bible. The first is Isaiah 6:1-2;

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. ² Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. ³ And they were calling to one another:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
                        the whole earth is full of his glory.”

The imagery for John comes almost straight out of Isaiah’s vision of meeting God. And while John does not expand on the purpose of the wings, he expects that his readers would make the connection with Isaiah – the beings had six wing with two covering the face, an indication of reverence, two covering the feet, an indication of humility, and with the other two they are flying. The imagery of heaven in John’s vision conforms with the image of heaven that John already understood from the Hebrew Scripture.

The second important text of influence here is Exodus 3:14 - God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” The words of God given to Moses carry a bit of a double meaning. First ‘I am who I am’ or ‘I am that I am,’ a simple statement arguing existence above everything else. God seems to be telling Moses to tell Israel “I exist and I am real. What more could you want?” But the words also contain the meaning of “I will be what I will be.” Understand, the future is held in my hands and I am inviting you to walk with me into it. For John, this idea is summed up with the words “who was, and is, and is to come.” John’s intention is that we will understand that God is real, and that the future, whatever that might entail, is held solidly in his hands. He is inviting us to join with him in that undiscovered country.

So, do angels in heaven have six wings? Maybe, but don’t be too concerned if you get there and they have no wings at all. The physical appearance really isn’t as important as the meaning behind the words – and a way for us to understand this realm of God which is beyond our understanding. Or as Paul put it - For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Revelation 5