OPENING THE BOOK WITH SEVEN SEALS

Rev. 5:9a ... "And they sang a new song, saying, 'You are worthy to take the Book, and to open the 

                     seals thereof.'"

      In a vision in exile on the island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea the apostle John was highly privileged to be shown a door opened in heaven. From the region beyond it he then heard a commanding voice say, "Come up hither," (Rev. 4:1). Obeying the voice, John saw God sitting on His throne invested in the beauty of unutterable glory. He also saw four Living Beings flanking the throne and, across a sea of crystalline glass, a group of twenty-four elders. All were worshipping God and lauding His incompar-able excellencies.

      In Rev. 5:1, John then saw in God's hand a book (or scroll) that was sealed with seven seals. A "strong angel" in a loud voice then addressed the entire celestial assembly with the question, "Who is worthy to open the Book, and to loose the seals thereof?" This writer believes that this Book represents God's will for mankind since it is first seen in God's hand and was obviously written and sealed by Him. The significance of its being sealed lies in its divine integrity, i.e., it is God's composition alone and sealed to preserve its divine purity.

      But for His will to accomplish its purpose among men, it had to be opened and revealed. Therefore the momentous question in v.2, "Who is worthy to open the Book, and to loose the seals thereof?" Only someone who was most select, who could meet God's most exacting requirements, would be "worthy" to take God's own Book and reveal its contents to the world. Accordingly, no one was found either on earth or in heaven to take the Book and break its seven seals. This failure seemed to doom God's will for man to the realm of eternal mystery, thus excluding the world from its enormous benefits. Such an apprehension filled John with grief and lamentation until one of the elders announced that the worthy individual had been found. He was "the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David ... a Lamb as [if ] it had been slain," (vs. 5-6). The last phrase indicates that He (Jesus Christ) had lately ascended from earth after His crucifixion and resurrection.

      Advancing to God's throne, Jesus took the Book and prepared to open its seven seals. (This event is described in detail in the next three chapters.) When He took the Book, all heaven erupted in joy and exultation. It is here that we come to the featured text above, for as the twenty-four elders rejoiced, "They sang a new song, saying, 'You are worthy to take the Book, and to open the seals thereof.'" Following them, myriads of angels took up their joyous chorus of praise. Heaven's jubilation was then echoed throughout the entire universe as "every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them ... [cried out], 'Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him who sits upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.'"

      In the succeeding chapters, as Jesus opens the seals so that God's will can be enacted upon earth, we see visions of the ungodly being judged for their unrighteousness, and of the godly being preserved and blessed for their righteousness. The message for us is that God rules over this world, no matter what geopolitical scene might appear in any given generation or century. For example, during the last century we witnessed the rise and fall of Nazi government, a godless and brutal power. For two decades the free world wondered if someday everyone might have to submit to the slavery of this regime. Within a dozen years of its beginning, however, this demonic threat collapsed after a terrific period of war. When men and nations have manifested their strength in wicked rebellion against God and in persecution of those who try to live for Him, God shall always prevail and claim the ultimate victory. This is the fund-amental message presented in Revelation, and it is amplified throughout the remainder of this terminal book of the Bible.

A VISION OF GOD

Rev. 4:8b ... "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come."

      In one of our most beloved hymns we sing the following stanza:

      "Let us then be true and faithful, trusting, serving every day;                                                                            Just one glimpse of Him in glory will the toils of life repay." 

      Men have always wondered what it would be like to see God, and some have expressed a great desire to obtain such a vision. Moses once inquired of God, "I pray you, show me Your glory," (Exo. 33:18). And the apostle Philip was even so forward as to request of Jesus, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us," (John 14:8). God answered Moses, "I will make My goodness pass before you ... [but] you cannot see My face; for no one can see Me and live," (Exo. 33:19-20). Then He put Moses in a "cleft of the rock" which He covered with His hand until His presence had passed Him by. Moses was then allowed to look out and see the back of God," (vs. 21-23). Jesus answered Philip's request with the profound statement, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father ... I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me." (John 14:9-10). Moses saw God's "goodness" and His "back." Philip and the other apostles saw the Father expressed through the personality and character of Jesus. (See also Heb. 1:3).

      In a wonderfully magnificent vision in Revelation 4 the apostle John was invited to "come up here," (v.1), where he was highly privileged to behold a representation of God and His heavenly court. He saw the Father sitting on His throne, from which proceeded emanations of variegated lights and "flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder." Before the throne was a "sea of glass like crystal," and between the throne and this sea were "seven lamps of fire burning." Beyond the sea sat twenty-four elders robed in white and wearing golden crowns. Nearest to God and on each side was a "living creature," which more accurately should be called a "living being." These four Beings continually gave "glory and honor and thanks" unto God, even as the twenty-four elders "worship Him." Concerning the identity of the Living Beings, there are several parallels between them and those seen by the prophet in Ezekiel chapters 1 and 10. In Ezk. 10:20 they are called "cherubim." They seem to be spirits of higher order than angels, since Rev. 5:11 refers to them in distinction to angels.

      It was the cherubim who uttered the word of the text above as an expression of worship to God: "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come." In this majestic affirmation they confessed -1- God's holiness, -2- God's supreme power, and -3- God's eternal being. Other expressions in this short chapter call our attention to four more of the supreme attributes of God: -4- in v.1 God's perfect prescience is mentioned in His promise to John, "and I will show you what must take place after these things;" -5- in v.11 God's incomparable worth is confessed by the elders, who say, "You are worthy, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power;" -6- also in v.11 there is emphasized God's creative power when the elders exclaim that "You did create all things, and because of Your will they existed and were created;" -7- in v.3 God's radiant beauty is expressed by the symbolism of light reflected from precious jewels.

      Here on earth we cannot behold God by our physical vision, but we can still appreciate John's experience and profit from what he saw and described in terms that strain the capacity of human language to express it. Our reverence and awe of God in response to learning these seven supreme attributes of His divine character will prepare us to enter His presence some day, look upon Him in His supreme glory, and then live in wonderful communion with Him through countless ages.

THE OPEN DOOR OF OPPORTUNITY

Rev. 3:8b ... "Behold,  have put before you an open door, which no one can shut."

      This statement of the Lord to the church in the city of Philadelphia in Asia Minor is perhaps the origin of the expression, "an open door of opportunity." Observing that the Christians who composed this congregation possessed "a little power," the Lord extended to them the opportunity to use it, though the text does not specify its nature. It suggests, however, that at least it involved the important matters of keeping God's word, enduring persecution, and overcoming all spiritual opposition. And probably it involved much more.

      The Scriptures often indicate that God opens doors of opportunity before His people, both as con-gregations collectively and as Christians individually. He expects us to recognize these "doors" and pass through them, that is, He looks for us to exercise the wisdom, faith, love, and strength to seize each of these opportunities and use it to the greatest good. He will grant us the requisite wisdom if we pray for it, (Jas. 1:5). The strength increases as we exercise ourselves in His service. The necessary faith is derived from devotion to the study of God's word, (Rom. 10:17). And our love increases as we contem- plate more and more the nature of God's great love for us, (John 3:16; I John 4:19).

      Opportunities are contingent upon time; they do not last indefinitely. When an opportunity is at its prime it is easiest to seize, and its outcome is most effective. With the passing of time, ranging from mere moments to months or years in some cases, the opportunity becomes progressively harder to seize, and its effects yield diminishing benefits. There comes the time when every opportunity is irretrievably lost. This was Jesus' point when He said in John 9:4, "We must work the works of Him who sent me, as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work." Our greatest duty in life is to reverence and obey God, (Eccl. 12:1), and He gives us the duration of life here as the opportunity to discharge it. This is what the Lord signified by the word "day." When life ends, the next major event is "the judg-ment," (Heb. 9:27). And that is what Jesus meant by the word "night." In other words, there is no further opportunity to discharge our duty in death. Although our conscious existence continues beyond the grave in the Hadean world, it is not a time for making amends for what we failed to do in this life.

      But while life here continues, as the climax of an opportunity passes, the degree to which it accom-plishes good steadily declines until a point is reached where the action involved yields little, if any, benefit when applied. For example, if a Christian wants to try to reclaim an erring brother until that person's heart is "hardened by the deceitfulness of sin," (Heb. 3:13), it may well become impossible to rescue him, (Heb. 6:4-6). Or consider the case of parents who are usually granted eighteen years to rear a child. While daily opportunities abound for them to "bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord," (Eph. 6:4), parents are often oblivious to them. They are so busy building their careers and pursuing other personal interests that they neglect giving proper attention to their children. Rather than being taught the truth revealed from God and being instilled with values of eternal merit, children are distracted by parents to adopt the world view current in society. And this popular education leads only to eternal death, (Pro. 14:12). It is pathetic when someone tries to press an advantage of the past that no longer exists, or only barely continues. The beauty of a faded flower cannot be renewed. And it is indeed tragic when an expired opportunity robs a life of the meaning and glory that it could have had. The truly "good life" is the one that is vigilant for the appearance of each opportunity that appears on the horizon and then seizes it to press its advantages when it draws abreast of the forward progress of one's life.

 

BE FAITHFUL UNTIL DEATH

Rev. 2:10 ... "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life."

      Jesus once said, "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God," (Lk. 9:62). Citizenship in the kingdom of God is a unique privilege for man to enjoy, yet it is open to all who will answer the invitation of the Lord, (Mat. 11:28-30), and obey His call of obedience to the gospel, (I Pet. 4:17-19). Once a member of this great spiritual domain, a person must labor to maintain his position. Sin in many guises assails him relentlessly to divert his loyalty from the King, (Mat. 13:18-22), and many are so careless as to let themselves be led away into its pollution again, (II Pet. 2:20-22). When this comes to pass, the apostate's relation to God is severed, (Isa. 59:2), and unless repentance is swift and comprehensive, the erring Christian will forfeit his place in the holy kingdom. 

       Evidently, many in the churches of Asia Minor in the last decade of the first century were taking up sinful practices, for the dominant theme in the letters to the seven churches in chapters two and three is an urgent call to repentance, (2:5, 16, 21-22; 3:3, 19). Also,  there is the persistent warning that one who fails to repent will have his candlestick removed "out of his place." That means the person's place in God's kingdom will be removed (or terminated) since he would no longer be bearing the light of right-eousness and truth. He would then be "cast into outer darkness," (Mat. 22:13), a place for those whose light has ceased to shine.

      A person maintains his place in the kingdom of God by his faith, (II Cor. 1:24), and unto this faith he must cling as long as life endures. In fact, he must live by that faith, trust in that faith, and defend that faith even if such loyalty should lead to and result in his death. That is, after all, the real intent of the exhortation in the text above: "Be faithful until death," (or, "even if it leads to your death").    

      God's reward for those who keep the faith, up to and even into death, is a "crown of life." The life spoken of here is everlasting life, with the emphasis upon both the quantity and the quality thereof. Everlasting life is that which is interminable. Those who die out of the faith are also granted eternal existence, (Mat. 25:46; Mrk. 9:42-48), but its nature is not fitly described by the word "life" with its rich connotations of a glorious state. Rather, the eternal existence of the unrepentent and unregenerate is presented in terms of imprisonment in darkness, misery, hopelessness, and agony. But the everlasting life promised to those who maintain their faith into death is more than unending existence.  It is an elevated state marked by joy, peace, rest, beauty, and fellowship with God in His infinite glory. The infidel in his eternal existence shall never experience these wonderful conditions.

      The reward of eternal life for the faithful is symbolized as a crown. There are two words in New Testament Greek that mean "crown." One is diadêma, which signifies royalty. The other is stephanos, which denotes victory. In Revelation, Satan is sometimes represented as wearing several crowns at a time, (12:3), but they are always the diadêma and never the stephanos. That is, having taken control of human governments, (Mat. 4:8,9; John 16:11; II Cor. 4:4; Eph. 6:12), the devil wears their crowns of dominion. But the great and final victory shall not go to him, so that he is never presented in Scripture as wearing the crown of victory, the stephanos. Jesus is also represented in Revelation as wearing many crowns, (19:12), but it is highly significant that they are indeed the crowns of victory, stephanoi. The victory in the war between Christ and Satan always goes to Christ, who shall in the end defeat the devil conclusively and forever, (Rev. 20:7-10). And the wonderful promise in Rev. 2:10 is that the Christian who maintains his faith into death shall share in Christ's great victory, for the "crown of life" that shall be given him is a stephanos.

       

THE ONE WHO IS BLESSED

Rev. 1:3 ... "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near."

      To most people the Book of Revelation is a very mysterious volume, full of cryptic passages. Some despair of understanding it, and consequently seldom read it. Others, however, look upon this terminal portion of the Bible as the key to understanding all the rest. Among these students one finds diversity of interpretation to the point of utter confusion, so that the advice is sometimes offered, "When you under-take a study of Revelation, be sure to use only one commentary."

      The purpose here is not to critique all these diverse interpretations, since a task that great is defi-nitely beyond this undertaking and its purpose. Nevertheless, this writer insists that God gave us this book to read, to understand, and to obey. The text above indicates this clearly when it pronounces a blessing upon those who -1- read, -2- hear (understand), and -3- "heed" (obey) the things that are written in it." The Lord has given us many commands in Revelation, and we ignore them only to our own hurt. We cannot, therefore, avoid this book as if it were a great cavern in which grotesque images move strangely in near darkness. Neither can we circumvent it as a maelstrom of confusion wherein the venturous traveler is soon lost in the countless crosscurrents of absurd conjecture.

      Some of the modern English versions (e.g., NEB and TEV) translate the Greek makarios as "happy" rather than "blessed." In doing so there is a great loss of meaning, so much so in this writer's estimation that damage is done to the message which the Lord seeks to convey. The word happy is derived from the root "hap" which denotes chance or luck. Webster's New World Dictionary defines "happy" as an emotional response to be favored by circumstances. The adverb "haply," which comes from the same root and is used a half-dozen times in the KJV, means "by chance or accident." All this means that being happy is the feeling we experience when situations in life turn out in our favor. The configuration of such advantageous circumstances, however, seldom last long. Like a beautiful cloud in the sky, they are soon transformed into something less, or even vanish entirely. This is why happiness is a fleeting thing; it lifts us up for a while only to drop us into melancholy before long. Those who pursue only happiness always in the end find disappointment.

      But it is not so with being blessed!, for God and not man is the origin of blessing. A blessing does not fall apart as components gradually drift away from one another, leaving only a fond memory with respect to the past and sorrow in the present. The blessings of God endure and are not consumed by one's rejoicing in them. The things that make us happy soon disappear, but the God who blesses us will sustain us therein as long as we maintain eligibility. This applies to the blessing of Rev. 1:3, to the famous blessings (or beatitudes) of Jesus in Mat. 5:1-12, and to all other blessings mentioned in the Bible. We should never substitute the word "happy" for blessed in God's word.

      Revelation is a book of sevens, a number which seems to indicate completeness, or perfection. One of its several sets of sevens is a collection of seven blessings. Our text, the second sentence in the book, is the first of these blessings, which in their scope suggest the fullness of God's grace bestowed upon those who believe, reverence, and obey Him. Although the blessing here is referred to the Book of Revelation, it is not difficult to recognize also the entire Bible within its compass. For the Bible in its entirety is from God, who likewise gave each of the other sixty-five books to be read, understood, and obeyed. (See II Tim. 3:14-17).