The Power of Worship

Part 2: An Audience of One

Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III

June 14, 2026

Scripture: Revelation 4:9–11 (NKJV)

⁹ Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, ¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:

“You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”

I.  INTRODUCTION

Watch the full sermon: https://www.youtube.com/live/5UJhCtaVI5g?si=UdBZRU_jPI140jm7

One of the greatest struggles in worship today is that many of us have become too aware of the audience in the room, and not aware of the God on the throne. We live in a culture that constantly trains us how to perform, how to present, and how to be noticed. Social media has exacerbated that, conditioning us to measure our value by visibility, applause, and affirmation.

But worship was never designed to be performative for people. Worship was always designed to be directed toward God. The challenge many of us experience is that we can be in a worship service and be more concerned about what people think of us than the actual glory God receives. When worship becomes horizontal and no longer vertical, we lose sight of the power worship brings into our lives.

Worship happens when we shift our focus away from the crowd and become fixated on the One who is on the throne. At that moment, when you begin to realize that authentic worship is not about sitting in the pews looking around to see who is here, everything begins to change — how you sing, how you pray, how you serve. Worship stops being about impressing people and becomes about honoring God.

The book of Revelation chapter 4 gives us a glimpse of heaven and the throne of God. Many of us approach Revelation as an apocalyptic book about the end of days — and that is true. However, if you look closer, you begin to realize that before John sees any of the judgments of God, the battles of history, or the events of the last days, he is taken to the throne room of heaven. Before there is a revelation of events, there is a revelation of worship.

The central image of Revelation is not a beast. It is not a dragon. It is not a battle. It is a throne. Forty times throughout the book of Revelation, John references the throne of God — reminding us that even though the earth we live in may be in chaos, even though the world may be going crazy, there is no chaos in heaven. God is still seated. God is still reigning. God is still worthy.

John saw one throne, and one seated on the throne. God does not share space with anyone else. John also saw a sea of crystal before the throne — representing peace, tranquility, and the truth that the closer you get to God, the more clearly you see yourself. The reason so many people cannot see themselves is that they are too far from the throne. The closer you get, the more you see your purpose, your vision, and who you truly are.

John then saw four living creatures around the throne, full of eyes — one with the face of a lion, one with the face of an ox, one with the face of a man, and one with the face of an eagle. Biblical scholars have noted that these four creatures symbolize the four Gospels:

• The lion — the Gospel of Matthew, presenting Jesus as King of kings.
• The ox — the Gospel of Mark, presenting Jesus as the Servant who dwelt among the people.
• The man — the Gospel of Luke, presenting the humanity of Jesus, including the parable of the prodigal son welcomed home by his father.
• The eagle — the Gospel of John and the Holy Spirit, presenting the divine, heavenly nature of Christ.

Each of the living creatures had six wings. With two they covered their faces — representing that in the presence of God, His glory is so powerful that even heavenly beings cannot behold Him in full. With two they covered their feet — representing great humility, that there is no room for pride in the presence of God. And with two they flew — representing that at the word of the One on the throne, they were freed and ready to fulfill any command at a moment’s notice.

There were also 24 elders around the throne, representing the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles of the New Testament. These elders had crowns on their heads, but at the throne, the Bible declares they laid down their crowns and began to sing in unison: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty — the whole earth is full of His glory.”

II.  TRUE WORSHIP BEGINS WHEN YOU PLACE EVERYTHING YOU VALUE AT THE FEET OF GOD

A.  What you are willing to lay down reveals who truly rules your life.

The elders casting down their crowns before the throne is one of the most powerful pictures of worship in all of Scripture. Crowns represent authority, influence, accomplishment, and recognition — everything that society says gives a person significance. Yet the elders in heaven take the very thing that represents their status and lay it down before God.

That action reveals a powerful truth about worship: you cannot truly honor God while still holding tightly to the symbols of your own greatness. Worship requires humility, because it acknowledges that everything we have, ultimately comes from God. The elders understood that whatever they possessed was only possible because God allowed it. They did not diminish their role — they simply positioned themselves properly in reference to God.

When you truly understand who God is, you stop clinging to the things that make you look important. God is not impressed by your title. He is not impressed by your degree. He is not impressed by where you live or what you have. Worship is an act of returning glory to the One who made it all possible. What you are willing to lay down reveals who truly rules your life.

The elders did not place their crowns beside the throne — they cast them before the throne. That detail matters. It demonstrates that there was no competition in glory. They understood that whatever honor they possessed could never rival the One who gave it. The crown represented influence, authority, and accomplishment — but they knew the crown was never the goal. The One on the throne is the goal.

Most of us are willing to give God our failures, but we struggle to give God our success. We surrender our weakness, but we hold tightly to our accomplishments. We trust Him in hardship, but when the blessings come, we say, “God, I’m good — I’ve got this.” Yet the greatest test of your spiritual maturity is not what you do when you have nothing. It is what you do when you have been blessed with something.

B.  Worship dies whenever something competes with God for your devotion.

What begins as a blessing can eventually become a substitute for the One who blessed us. Distractions slowly become devotions — not through intention, but through neglect. Consider the pattern in Scripture:

• King Saul started out pleased with God, but eventually became more concerned about protecting his position than obeying God’s voice. When confronted by Samuel, Saul admitted in 1 Samuel 15:24: “I feared the people and obeyed their voice.” The crown that destroyed Saul was the need for people’s approval.
• Samson’s strength was a gift from God, but he became more captivated by his own desires and lost sight of the God who empowered him. What God intended as a blessing became a distraction, and his appetite became greater than his calling.
• Martha in Luke 10 was busy doing good things for Jesus but neglecting time with Jesus. She was serving Him but not sitting with Him. Her activity for God began competing with her intimacy with God.

Our crowns may look different, but the principle remains the same. Consider what crown may be competing for your devotion:

• Your career. There is nothing wrong with success — but when making money becomes more important than maintaining your relationship with God, the crown has become your competitor. We work long hours, skip worship, neglect prayer, and sacrifice family on the altar of ambition.
• Recognition. We become addicted to applause, affirmation, and validation. We go through an existential crisis if people don’t affirm what we’ve done. But there comes a moment when you have to do what you do not on demand, but on calling. I don’t do it for certificates or applause — I do it to hear two words: “Well done.”
• Relationships. You can become so emotionally attached to a person that their opinion outweighs the Word of God. I have seen people faithful in God get into a dysfunctional relationship, and the voice of that person moves them away from church, away from God — until that opinion becomes greater than their relationship with God.
• Control. We want to manage every detail of our lives, every outcome, every relationship, every situation. We trust our plans more than we trust God’s purposes. Yet worship requires us to release control and trust the One who sits on the throne — to lean not on our own understanding, but in all our ways to acknowledge Him, and let Him direct our path.
• Self-sufficiency. Perhaps the most powerful and subtle crown. We become successful enough, educated enough, connected enough, resourceful enough — and prayer becomes our last resort. We stop depending on God because we have it all worked out. Until God pulls the rug from under us, and all of a sudden wex find ourselves flat on our back — in a hospital, broken and without options. And that’s when somebody can testify: that’s when God got real for me. It was at the bottom, when my money couldn’t do it, my education couldn’t do it, my friends couldn’t do it — I found out there was nobody else.

III.  WORSHIP FLOURISHES WHEN WE REMEMBER THAT EVERYTHING BEGINS AND ENDS WITH GOD

Philippians 1:6 (NKJV): “Being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

God is not merely the One who starts a thing — He is the One who sustains it and brings it to completion. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. No matter what transition you experience, always know: God will fill the exact space that was left open.

Many of us get stuck in the middle. God is the beginning of a thing, and God brings it to completion — but in the middle, we panic. The bill hasn’t been paid yet. The tuition hasn’t come in yet. You haven’t heard back yet. But you must remember: if God began a thing, stop worrying about the details in the middle. Just throw your hands up and worship Him, because if He started it, He is going to bring it to pass.

Remember when Jesus told His disciples, “Let us go to the other side” — and then went to sleep in the back of the boat? Jesus, being God, knew the storm was coming. But He established the destination before the storm arrived. When the storm hit and the disciples panicked, Jesus said, “O you of little faith” — meaning: why are you letting what’s happening in the middle frustrate you? Have you forgotten that I said we are going to the other side? If I am on your ship, we are going to get there.

God is always preparing before He provides. He is always arranging before He reveals. He is always working before you can see it. Consider the pattern throughout Scripture:

• Noah — God gave him instructions to build an ark before a single drop of rain had fallen. The provision (the ark) was prepared before the storm arrived.
• Abraham — God called him to a land he had not yet seen, but God had already chosen it. The destination was prepared before Abraham took a step.
• Moses — God prepared Moses in the wilderness for 40 years before sending him to lead Israel out of Egypt. The leader was being formed before the mission was revealed.
• Joseph — Every betrayal, every pit, every prison was preparation. By the time Joseph stood before Pharaoh, God had already arranged the outcome. What his brothers meant for evil, God had already turned for good.
• Peter — Jesus told Peter, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times” — but He also said, “When you have returned, strengthen your brothers.” God had already prepared Peter’s restoration before the failure happened.
• Jesus — “In my Father’s house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” Everything He prepares is ready before you walk into it. He will never drop you into a blessing without preparing it first.

A.  The reality of creation constantly points us back to the Creator.

You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created. – Worship is rooted in this truth: God is both the Author and the Sustainer of all things. Everything that begins with Him and exists because of Him ultimately finds its fulfillment in Him.

Have you ever come home after a hard day at work, stepped outside, and just started noticing small things — the tree, the little bird, the quiet — and turned your phone off for a moment? Have you ever planned a trip to the beach, and the moment you got to the water, all your pressure just left? That’s God’s creation doing what it was designed to do — point you back to the Creator.

Every morning the sun rises and the moon hangs in its place. The tides know where to stop. The seasons change without a committee meeting. Your heart beats while you are asleep. Your lungs keep breathing without you thinking about it. We are surrounded by miracles that have become so common we hardly notice them. But creation is constantly preaching a sermon:

• God put heat in the sun.
• God put rhythm in the waves.
• God put frequency in the flowers.
• God put breath in your lungs.
• God put a beat in your heart.

The same God who holds the Earth in orbit — keeping it close enough to the sun that we don’t freeze, and far enough that we don’t burn — is the same God who holds your life in His hands. If God can manage the entire universe, do you not think He can handle your situation?

Creation is a witness stand. Every sunrise declares God is faithful. Every mountain declares God is powerful. Every season declares God is consistent. Every newborn declares God is still creating. God left the evidence of Himself everywhere. And if you need evidence, just look in the mirror — because you are evidence. If someone saw you five years ago, they would know how great God is. You do not even look like what you used to be.

B.  Giving God the credit restores the priorities our culture distorts.

The elders did not celebrate themselves. They did not compare their crowns. They did not discuss their accomplishments or how they arrived. They directed all the glory back to God — bringing us to a place where we stop being guilty of cosmic plagiarism, taking credit for what God has done.

Our culture is obsessed with self-promotion. We celebrate so-called self-made people. We applaud individual achievement and reward self-sufficiency. But the more you become a true worshiper, the more you understand one principle: there is no such thing as a self-made person.

Who gave you the mind to think? Who gave you the strength to work? Who opened the door? Who connected you to the right people? Who woke you up this morning? Who protected you from dangers you never saw coming? Who kept you alive long enough to become what you became? If it had not been for the Lord on your side, you would not be here today.

That is why they cast down their crowns — because they understood that everything they were was a result of what God had done in their lives. And worship, when it becomes a consistent lifestyle rather than an occasional event, keeps success from turning into self-sufficiency. It reminds us that we are only stewards of what God has entrusted to us.

IV.  WORSHIP BECOMES POWERFUL WHEN IT BECOMES A CONSISTENT LIFESTYLE RATHER THAN AN OCCASIONAL EVENT

A.  Daily worship changes how you see God.

Notice something striking in the Revelation text: there was no worship leader prompting the living creatures. There was no praise team encouraging their participation, no announcement that said, “Now let’s praise God.” The living creatures cried “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty” day and night without ceasing, because they never lost sight of the One who is on the throne.

When you know who is on the throne, you do not need someone to pump you up. You do not need to wait for your favorite worship leader or your favorite song. You come to church not to be entertained — you come to worship. Some of you are already worshiping in your shower in the morning. Some of you are worshiping in your car on the way here. Some of you worship on the job. You do not need all the extras — when you think about who is on the throne, it is more than enough.

Some of us only worship from about 11:15 on Sunday morning until about 1 o’clock, and then we turn it off and go back to our regular scheduled program. But if He is worthy in the sanctuary, He is worthy in the boardroom. If He is worthy during the song service, He is worthy while you are sitting in traffic. If He is worthy when things are going well, He is worthy when life becomes difficult.

Daily worship changes how you see God — and how you see God changes how you see everything else. My problems looked so big because I had taken my eyes off of Him. I was amplifying my problems, magnifying my situation, telling people how bad things were. But when I became a worshiper and saw the One on the throne in His full majesty and power and authority, I began to realize how small my problems really were. When you keep your focus on Him, your problems are not as big as you thought they were.

Before David faced Goliath, he did not go straight into the battle. He first reflected on the lion and the bear — he recounted what God had already done — and he worshiped God before he ever picked up a stone. When you are about to go into the battles of your life, begin by reflecting on what God has already done. Keep a record of God’s faithfulness. And every time you go into a battle, give God glory in advance — because you believe it is already done.

B.  Worship doesn’t stop when life gets hard.

Life is going to get hard. There are going to be things you never anticipated, things you did not expect. But just because that happens does not mean your worship has to stop. If He is worthy in heaven, He is worthy on earth. Your worship should never change because of your circumstances.

Some people’s whole disposition changes when circumstances change. They walk around bitter and walk around depressed. But consider what Job was trying to show us: Can you worship God when life goes left? Can you worship God if you lost everything, because you recognize who God is in your life?

Job — knowing his friends were watching, knowing his wife said “Curse God and die” — sat down in ashes, put on sackcloth, and declared: “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” When you are a worshiper, you are the kind of person who can sit back and declare: “When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll — whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, it is well with my soul.”

When you are a worshiper, you can lift your hands and declare: I’ve had good days and bad days, hills and clouds, but all of my good days still outweigh my bad days — and I won’t complain, because God has been good to me. It does not matter what happens in your life. You are not giving God glory for applause. You are not chasing validation. You are not after the opinions of people. This is for an audience of One.

Worship has a Stance.

You can always identify a worshiper by their humility. People who are true worshipers carry a posture of humility wherever they go. When I come to this pulpit, I come in great humility — in awe that God would use somebody like me, when He could have chosen anyone. That is why, every time God gives you a platform, you always give the glory to Him.

Worship has a posture. You ought to be the kind of person who speaks to everybody around you. You should not be sitting in your seat, unavailable to the people next to you, acting as though no one can approach you. When you become a worshiper, the pride breaks down. The spirit of narcissism and arrogance has no place. A worshiper is accessible, humble, and present.

Worship has a Surrender.

The elders laid down their crowns and said, in essence: whatever everybody else is holding on to, we are giving it to You. Nothing will compete for Your glory. I am at a point in my life where nothing is going to compete for God’s glory. I may be a bishop, I may pastor a great church — but none of that competes with God’s glory. Because at the end of the day, I know that God can get this done without me.

God can get it done without you too. Lay it down today. Lay down all of the stuff you have been walking around posting and flexing about. Can you say: God, it’s not about my car. It’s not about my house. It’s not about my education. It’s all about You. I never would have what I have, I never would have the opportunities I have, if it were not for You.

Worship has a Sound.

The Bible declares: “Holy, holy, holy — the whole earth is full of His glory.” When you are a worshiper, you cannot sit there with your tongue tied. There is a sound that cannot be stopped. Even when you are bleeding, even when you are hurting, you have faith enough to still say, “God, I believe You are going to turn this around.”

When you have the sound of worship, it gets on the enemy’s nerves. Praise intimidates the enemy — because when you are worshiping, you are declaring that God made a way. God turned that situation around. Forget about protocol. Forget about who is sitting next to you. Lift your hands to the One on the throne. When you lift your hands, you are joining the angels and all of creation: “Bless the Lord, O my soul.”

I declare that this is a generation that refuses to do church as usual. This is a generation going through transformation. When we worship, things break. Things shift. Heaven responds. This is your moment — lift your hands to an audience of One.

Have a blessed new week with the Lord! ❤️