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When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying "Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades."
Revelation 1:17-18
And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song...
Revelation 5:8
The quotes listed above come from a vision recorded by a man named John in the late 1st century. He was within the core group of those who followed Jesus around, and within that group John was the closest to him. Jesus is the man whose feet he fell at as though dead in the first quote. He is also the "lamb" who the elders fall down at in the second quote.
I heard this section of the Bible read as part of a sermon by Derek Prince. The sermon was excellent, and I'll be sure to credit him at a certain point. I was thinking about these things over the next day, and read Revelation 4 - 6 to my family last night before thinking about it some more.
<= http://somewhere.com Derek Prince's Sermon (todo: find a link)
Prince pointed out, and I'll repeat it here, that fear is the natural reaction to seeing Jesus in his natural, powerful state. Jesus is the Judge, and his word in any matter is final. John fell at his feet as though dead, and this resembles how other people reacted upon seeing God in his power.
Peter, another follower of Jesus, reacted similarly when Jesus first demonstrated his power to him. Luke 5 records him falling at Jesus' feet saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful mano O Lord." Isaiah, an earlier prophet who had a vision of God, reacted by saying, "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!"
If we have trouble imagining this is it because we underestimate the experience of being in the presence of God. There is a certain terror in things that are unknown, or expose us, or have power over us, or can righteously judge us. Someday we will all stand before him. As for me, it will be a terrible and wonderful experience. Terrible because he will be greater than my imaginings. His attention will be on me, and there will be nowhere to hide. Wonderful because he will accept me, and there is nobody else I would rather be accepted by.
John fell at the feet of Jesus, but he said, "Fear not." And why should John not fear? It is because Jesus is alive. He holds his rank precicely because he sacrificed himself for John and for us.
John fell at the feet of Jesus in one encounter, and a short time later we see twenty-four elders falling at his feet as well. This happens in the throne room of God. The title of "elder" may be a modest one. These elders have thrones of their own surrounding God's great throne, and they wear crowns on their heads. Whoever they are, they have a high honor given to them, and yet they fall down at the feet of Jesus as a slain lamb.
They praise him because he alone is worthy to initiate God's plan. He earned this right by the fact that he was slain. The elders sing a song which begins as follows:
Worthy are you to take the scroll and open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.
Revelation 5: 9
This says to me that all will fall at the feet of Jesus in reverance and worship. John was just a man as we are. He was awestruck in seeing Jesus as Judge, though he was Jesus' closest friend. The twenty-four elders fell at his feet in worship, though they are seated in the throne room of God. Whether in reverance for his power and authority, or in reverance of his actions, we will all fall at his feet.