Revelation
5
(Ed: What is a "key
word" in this chapter")
1 I
saw in the
right
hand of
Him
who
sat on the
throne a
book
written
inside and on the
back,
sealed up with
seven
seals.
2 And I
saw a
strong
angel
proclaiming with a
loud
voice,
"Who is
worthy to
open the
book
and to
break
its
seals?"
3 And
no
one in
heaven
or on the
earth
or
under the
earth was
able to
open the
book
or to
look into
it.
4 Then
I began to
weep
greatly
because
no
one was
found
worthy to
open the
book
or to
look into
it;
5 and
one of the
elders
said to me,
"Stop
weeping;
behold, the
Lion that is from the
tribe of
Judah, the
Root of David , has
overcome so as to
open the
book
and
its
seven
seals."
6 And I
saw
between the
throne (with the
four
living
creatures ) and the
elders a
Lamb
standing, as
if
slain,
having
seven
horns and
seven
eyes,
which are the
seven
Spirits of
God,
sent out into
all the
earth.
7 And
He
came and
took the
book
out of the
right
hand of
Him
who
sat on the
throne.
8 When
He
had
taken the
book, the
four
living
creatures and the
twenty-four
elders
fell
down
before the
Lamb,
each
one
holding a
harp and
golden
bowls
full of
incense,
which are the
prayers of the
saints.
9 And they
sang a
new
song,
saying,
"Worthy are
Thou
to
take the
book
and to
break
its
seals; for
Thou
wast
slain, and
purchased for
God with
Thy
blood men from
every
tribe and
tongue and
people and
nation.
10 have
made them to be a
kingdom and
priests to our
God; and they will
reign upon the
earth."
11 Then
I
looked, and I
heard the
voice of
many
angels
around the
throne and the
living
creatures and the
elders; and the
number of them was
myriads of
myriads, and
thousands of
thousands,
12 saying
with a
loud
voice,
"Worthy is the
Lamb
that was
slain to
receive
power and
riches and
wisdom and
might and
honor and
glory and
blessing."
13 And
every
created
thing
which is in
heaven and on the
earth and
under the
earth and on the
sea, and
all
things in them, I
heard
saying, "To
Him
who
sits on the
throne, and to the
Lamb, be
blessing and
honor and
glory and
dominion
forever and
ever."
14 And the
four
living
creatures kept
saying,
"Amen." And the
elders
fell
down and
worshiped.
Who are the 4 horsemen of the
apocalypse?
We will look at Revelation 5, which is a scene in
heaven.
What is so special about the SCROLL?
The
Lamb takes the seven sealed scroll (NASB = ''book'',
Greek
biblion,
-
Rev. 1:11; 5:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9; 6:14; 10:8; 13:8; 17:8;
20:12; 21:27; 22:7, 9, 10, 18, 19) from the One
seated on the throne. (Ed:
Click well written conservative
comment on the scroll in Revelation 5)
Why was he weeping?
Because no one was found worthy to open the scroll.
Why did John want the scroll opened?
Because as we have seen the opening
of that scroll unleashed all manner of cataclysmic events.
|
|
|
SEAL |
ASSOCIATED ACTION OR EVENT |
|
1st Seal |
Rev 6:1, 2
A white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown
was given to him; and he went out conquering, and to conquer. |
|
2nd Seal |
Rev 6:3, 4
A red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was
granted to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one
another; and a great sword was given to him. |
|
3rd Seal |
Rev 6:5, 6
A black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in
his hand. And I heard as it were a voice in the center of the four
living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius (day's wage),
and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil
and the wine." |
|
4th Seal |
Rev 6:7, 8
An ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and
Hades was following with him. And authority was given to them over a
fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with
pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth. |
|
5th Seal |
Rev 6:9, 10, 11
Martyrs "underneath the altar the souls of those who had been
slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which
they had maintained" |
|
6th Seal |
Rev 6:12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17
Great earthquake, sun black as sackcloth, whole moon like
blood, stars of sky fell, sky split apart, every mountain and island
moved out of their places, men hid themselves |
|
7th Seal |
Rev 8:1, 2
Silence in heaven for about half an hour, Seven angels given
seven trumpets |
Revelation 6 describes the
beginning of cataclysmic events in the heavens, as all men on earth (great
and small,
bond and free) seek to hide in caves and among rocks, crying out because
of the WRATH OF THE LAMB and OF GOD HAS COME TO THE EARTH.
"And
they said to the mountains and to the rocks, "Fall on us and
hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from
the wrath of the Lamb for the great day of their wrath has come; and
who is able to stand?"
Why is the scroll written on the FRONT & BACK?
There is no room left to
add anything else, so no can tamper with it.
When the seals are broken, we see the "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" ride
onto the world scene.
When the Seventh Seal is broken,
(Rev 8:1-note)
Seven Trumpets are sounded in succession and when the Seventh
Trumpet sounds John records that
there arose loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of
the world has become [the kingdom] of our Lord, and of His Christ;
and He will reign forever and ever." And the twenty-four elders, who
sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped
God, saying, "We give Thee thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who art
and who wast, because Thou hast taken Thy great power and hast begun
to reign. "And the nations were enraged, and Thy wrath came, and the
time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to give their
reward to Thy bond-servants the prophets and to the saints and to
those who fear Thy name, the small and the great, and to destroy
those who destroy the earth." And the temple of God which is in
heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His
temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of
thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm." (Rev
11:15-19-note)
The Seventh trumpet inaugurates the beginning of the kingdom
of this world becoming the kingdom of our Christ. Proceeding out of
the Seventh Trumpet are Seven Bowls of Judgment which
are poured out upon the earth. The pouring out of the first bowl
produces a
loathsome and malignant sore sore upon the men who
had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image
(Rev 16:2-note).
This bowl is poured out on
all those who have worshiped the Beast and taken the mark of the beast (described in
Rev 13:16, 17-note)
After the Seventh and final bowl John records these words
"And the
seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air; and a loud voice
came out of the temple from the throne, saying, "It is done."
That is, the wrath of God is
finished. Then follows an earthquake like none other. And "the great
city" (Rev 16:19)
was split
into three parts. And Babylon is given the cup of the wrath of God and the
kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Christ.
GIVEN THE SUCCESSION OF EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE OPENING OF THE
SEVEN SEALED SCROLL, WE CAN BEGIN TO SEE WHY THE OPENING OF THE SCROLL IS SO SIGNIFICANT.
You may be saying ''But this is judgment...Why are they weeping when no
one could open the scroll? And why do they rejoice over the breaking of
the seals if the result is only judgment?''
EXPLANATION OF THE REJOICING OVER BREAKING OF THE SEALS:
Revelation 4 = begins with "after these things", that is after the
things John had seen and described in Revelation 1-3 - the glorified
Christ in Revelation 1, "the things that are" in Revelation 2-3 (the
7 letters to seven churches) and
"things which shall take place after these things.''
(Rev 1:19-note)
Revelation 4:1-note
"After these things I looked, and behold, a door [standing] open in
heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like [the sound] of a
trumpet speaking with me, said, "Come up here, and I will show you
what must take place after these things."
THE 24 ELDERS CAST THEIR CROWNS AND PROCLAIM
"Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and
honor and power; for Thou didst create all things, and because of Thy will
they existed, and were created." (Rev 4:11-note)
They are extolling Him because He
has created all things.
Genesis 1 gives the account of the
Creation in 6 days, and Kay believes these
are 6 literal days because that is what God the Father and Jesus both said.
GOD'S DESIRE FOR MAN
WAS FOR ''THEM'' TO RULE THE EARTH
Genesis 1:26 "Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our
likeness; and LET THEM (male & female) RULE over the fish of the sea
and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth,
and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
So God's original
intention was that MAN (''them'' = male & female) would
rule.
Genesis 1:28 "And God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and
multiply, and fill the earth, and SUBDUE IT; AND RULE OVER the fish of the
sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves
on the earth."
IN GENESIS 2 GOD PLACED MAN IN A PERFECT ENVIRONMENT with TWO TREES:
the tree of life & tree of knowledge of good & evil.
Genesis 2:16, 17 "And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "From any tree of the
garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it YOU SHALL
SURELY DIE."
In Genesis 3, we see that the Serpent
deceived Eve, telling her she would not die, but instead that
she would be like God, knowing good and evil, in the sense that she could
then look at something and say ''This is good'' or ''This is evil''.
Man didn't want God to tell him what was good and evil because man wanted to be
his own god, choosing for himself what was good and evil. Eve listened to
the Serpent of old, the devil, Satan (as identified in Rev 12:9-note,
cp Lk 10:18), the result being
that Adam and Eve were seduced by the enemy, believing THE LIE. They
ate
of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
What happened?
Go to Romans 5:12 (note) where Paul writes
"Therefore,
just as through one man sin entered into the world, and DEATH
through sin, and so DEATH spread to all men, because all sinned"
Ge 5:1-3 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day
when God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. (cf Ge
1:26) He created them male
and female, and He blessed them and named them Man in the day when
they were created. When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years,
he became the father of a son in his own likeness,
according to his image, and named him Seth."
So in Genesis 5 we see that Adam
who was created in the likeness of God (cf Ge 1:26, 5:1, Jas
3:9) then
brought forth children who were not in the image of God, but who
were now in the image of Adam or in the image of
man and so they were ''little sinners''. And so, the sin that
"infected" Adam was spread throughout the earth.
SINNERS
NEED
A KINSMAN
REDEEMER
WHAT HAPPENED TO MAN'S RIGHT TO RULE OVER THE EARTH?
Paul, writing to the Ephesian church, records that
"you were dead in your trespasses and sins, (until you come to
know the Lord Jesus Christ by a personal, individual decision) in which
you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to
the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in
the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the
lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind,
and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest." (Eph 2:1,
2-note,
3-note) (Ed: John adds that "the whole world lies
in [the power] of the evil one" (1Jn 5:19)
where "evil one" in context describes Satan)
In Colossians Paul adds that God
delivered us (Ed: where we were sons of disobedience, children of wrath) from the domain of darkness (Ed: ruled by the "prince of the power of the air), and transferred
us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins. (Col 1:13, 14-note)
So Adam and Eve who were created to rule over the earth LOST THEIR CROWNS
when they sinned. Instead of rulers, they
became "sons of disobedience", "slaves to sin" (cf Ro
6:6-note,
Ro 6:16-note,
Pr 5:22-note,
2Pe 2:19-note,
Jn 8:34), now ruled over by Satan, "the
prince of the power of the air", the ruler of the world system
which is hostile toward God.
Go to John 12, where
Jesus was talking about His coming crucifixion and that His hour had come:
Jesus declared
"Now judgment is upon this world; now the
ruler of this world (Satan - cp Mt. 4:8, 9; Lk 4:6, 7; 2Co 4:4) shall be cast out." (John 12:31,
cp Jn 14:30, 16:11)
When Jesus died on the Cross, the prince of the power of the air was
"cast out" in regard to his
dominion over men who were saved by faith. The man who now looks to
the Cross of Jesus Christ is set free from the domain of darkness
(and the rule of Satan) and is transferred to the kingdom of light
ruled by God's beloved Son, Jesus Christ. This man experiences
the forgiveness of sins because Jesus our KINSMAN
REDEEMER has paid the PRICE
FOR OUR REDEMPTION ("in [Jesus] we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins" - Col 1:14-note). (Ed: see
Heb 2:14, 15-notes)
So MAN starts out RULING over creation, then LOSING HIS RIGHT to rule over
creation because of SIN.
When MAN loses his right to DOMINION over the face
of the earth WHO gets the right of DOMINION?
From the previous Scriptures, it is clear that Satan gets that right,
becoming the PRINCE not only of the air, but also becoming the PRINCE of
this world, and now fallen, unredeemed man lives in the Kingdom of the EVIL ONE
and under his power.
Unredeemed men
stay in the Evil One's kingdom until they come to know the Lord Jesus
Christ (their Redeemer). When a man comes to know the Lord Jesus Christ, he passes
out of death into life, out of the kingdom of darkness, the kingdom of Satan
and into the kingdom of God, ruled by His Son. This entire
transaction is made possible because of one act, the act of the
KINSMAN REDEEMER, the Lord Jesus Christ, redeeming enslaved sinners by paying the price
of redemption, which is the
"precious blood, as of a
lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ." (1Peter1:18,
19-note)
At this present time, although we have our redemption individually, since
many have not believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, Satan is still ruling
this world as the prince of the power of the air, the PRINCE OF THIS
WORLD. Therefore CREATION is groaning and travailing, because when Adam &
Eve sinned (see Ge 3:17) all CREATION was subjected
to FUTILITY
"Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And
you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face You
shall eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you
were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return."'
Ge3:18, 19.
So God
"drove
(Adam) out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed
the cherubim, and the flaming sword which turned every direction, to
guard the way to the tree of life" (Gen 3:24)
lest he eat of the tree and live
forever as a sinner.
When God cast Adam out of the garden, all creation
became subjected to futility.
In Romans 8 Paul writes
For I consider that the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with
the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing (apokaradokia
[word study]) of the
CREATION (everything,
not just man) waits eagerly for the revealing (apokalupsis
[word
study] ~
apocalypse) of the sons of God. (When? at the end of
the pouring out of the Seventh Bowl, when we see present world becoming the
Kingdom of His Christ) For the
CREATION was subjected to
futility, not of its own
will, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the
CREATION
itself also will be set free (eleutheroo
[word study]) from its slavery to corruption into the
freedom (eleutheria
[word study])
of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole CREATION groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the
Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly (apekdechomai
[word study] in the
present tense
= as our
lifestyle, our habitual practice) for
[our] adoption as sons, the redemption of our body." (Ro 8:18, 19-note,
Ro 8:20, 21-note,
Ro 8:22, 23-note)
So during this present time when the church is existing (Rev
2-3),
all creation is groaning and travailing but this agony will come to an
end when the
Seven Seals are broken,
bringing forth the
Seven Trumpets, in turn bringing forth
the Seven Bowls. Then it will come to an
end and we shall see the New
Jerusalem coming down out of heaven as a bride prepared and adorned for
her Husband and God Himself will wipe away every tear and there will be no
tears and no more pain and no more sorrow and no more death, because the
former things will have passed away. The
Lamb will be in the midst of the
throne and we will live with Him forever and ever and we will walk in the
paradise of God and we will eat of the fruit of the TREE OF LIFE. And
there will be a river flowing through it and nothing that defiles will
enter that temple. (Rev 21-22)
So why did the apostle
John want the SCROLL OPENED?
Because it would bring THE
MYSTERY OF GOD TO A FINISH (Rev 10:7-note)
and we would understand and see that "the kingdom of the world has
become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He will reign
forever and ever." (Rev 11:15-note)
What or Who could bring
this about?
In Rev 5 we see One sitting on the throne holding the scroll and the angel
asking who is worthy to take the scroll and to break its seals?
And no one in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, was
able to open the book, or to look into it. (Rev 5:3)
THE
FATHER'S PLAN
OF REDEMPTION
So why didn't God the Father
do it? Because He
couldn't. Because He had ordained a PLAN, the PLAN OF REDEMPTION.
God the Father initially gave the right to rule this earth to man
but man lost that right to rule to an angel, a created being, who
was beautiful, who was magnificent, and who decided one day that he
would ascend into heaven, that he would set his thrown above the
thrown of God, that he would be like God, and that he would rule. (Is
14:12, 13, 14, 15, Ezek 28:12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 are both passages that
many interpret as descriptive of Satan and his fall) And when the
highest angel rebelled against God, God cast him out and the highest
cherub became the Devil, Lucifer (this beautiful one of light) who
walked into the Garden of Eden as a Serpent, but who slithered out
on his belly. In between WALKING IN and SLITHERING OUT, man became a
SLAVE TO SIN and a SLAVE TO SATAN (cp 1Jn 3:7, 8, 9, 10). No one is found in heaven (not
any of the 24 elders, etc. or any created being in heaven or on
earth or in the bowels of hell) who can open the SCROLL and John
weeps because this SCROLL is what is going to bring all creation out
of FUTILITY (Ed: Greek word means empty, profitless, not
possessing the ability to reach it's goal or intended purpose) into
what God intended it to be. And yet there is no one worthy to open
the book...so he weeps.
He writes
And I began to weep greatly,
because no one was found worthy to open the book, or to look into it
and one of the elders said to me,
Stop weeping; behold, the LION
that is from the tribe of Judah, the ROOT of DAVID, has OVERCOME so
as to open the book and its seven seals." (Rev 5:4, 5-note)
WHAT HAS THE LION OF
THE TRIBE OF JUDAH OVERCOME?
He has OVERCOME (conquered) SIN, DEATH, THE GRAVE, THE DEVIL. He has
overcome so as to open the book and its Seven Seals.
Who is this Lion, the Root of
David?
John records
And I
saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the
elders a Lamb
standing, [standing is perfect
tense
= past completed action with a present and continuing result) as if slain
(perfect tense), having seven horns
and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into
all the earth. And He came, and He took [it] out of the right
hand of Him who sat on the throne. And WHEN HE HAD TAKEN THE BOOK,
the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down
before the Lamb, having each one a harp, and golden bowls full of
incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a
new song, saying, "Worthy art Thou to take the book, and to break
its seals; (Why is
the Lamb WORTHY?)
for Thou wast SLAIN, and didst
purchase [word study] for God with Thy
blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation (cp
Rev 7:9-note). And
Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they
will reign upon the earth. (Rev 5:6, 7, 8, 9, 10-note)
According to these passages, once again MAN will Rule and "Reign
upon the earth". What man lost in the garden of Eden is going to
be restored to them WHEN the four riders of the Apocalypse come
forth as the seven seals are broken, followed by the blowing of the
seven trumpets and culminating in the pouring out of the seven bowl
judgments upon the earth. THEN the kingdom of this world will become
the kingdom of our Christ and we who know Him shall rule forever and
ever! (Hallelujah!) That's why he was weeping. John wanted the seals
on the scroll to be broken. Yes, this scroll initially brings
judgment on the earth, but it also brings the triumph of Christ and
the triumph of the sons of God.
WHY IS JESUS CALLED THE
LION OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH, THE ROOT OF DAVID?
Because the One who could open up the seals had to be a MAN, a human
being (He 2:15-note,
Ro 1:3-note). It was MAN who lost his right to RULE because he submitted to
Satan, so now the One that is going to rule has to be a Man.
What MAN could this be?
There is no one in
heaven, on earth or under the earth that is worthy. There is no
angel that is worthy because it was man that lost in sin not the
angels. So we have the GOD-MAN, Jesus born from the TRIBE OF
JUDAH, born from the ROOT OF DAVID, born but WITHOUT SIN. Why?
Because He was born the SON OF GOD, born of a VIRGIN, a virgin from
the tribe of Judah, a virgin, from the house of David. But His
earthly father was non-existent because He is the Son of God. So He
was SON OF GOD and SON OF MAN. And so "every created thing which
is in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea and all
things in them" begin to rejoice and to shout WORTHY IS THE LAMB
BECAUSE HE IS STANDING BETWEEN THE THRONE AND THE ELDERS AS OUR
KINSMAN REDEEMER.
JUBILEE,
JUBILEE, JUBILEE
JUBILEE, JUBILEE, JUBILEE:
IT'S THE TIME FOR THE LAND & THE SLAVE TO BE SET FREE.
Every 50th year in the land of
Israel was designated THE YEAR OF JUBILEE. (Jubilee
Year)
(Play
Michael Card's great song "Jubilee" - Hallelujah!)
Go to Leviticus where we see God laying down the ordinances, the
statutes, the offerings, the feast of Israel and all that she is to
obey before God. In Leviticus 25 through Moses God tells His people
about THE YEAR OF JUBILEE:
Lev 25:10 'You shall thus
consecrate (dedicate, sanctify, set apart) THE 50TH YEAR
and proclaim (cry out, utter a loud sound) a RELEASE (Ed: liberty -- this verse was inscribed on the Liberty
Bell and cited at its ringing as the Declaration of Independence was
signed) through the land to ALL its inhabitants. It shall be a
JUBILEE (In the Greek translation of the Hebrew this is
translated "year of release" where "release" = aphesis
[word study]) for you, and each of you shall return to HIS OWN
PROPERTY, and each of you shall RETURN TO HIS FAMILY.
WHAT IS GOD TALKING
ABOUT?
Sometimes the Jews would get into financial trouble and they would
be forced to sell their property. But that property had been GIVEN
TO THEM BY GOD. God had ordained exactly where Dan and Napthali and
Benjamin and all the tribes of the sons of Israel would live. God
gave them specific land and property. But sometimes they would sell
the property because of a debt. But because God had given them that
land, every JUBILEE that land had to be returned to the
family that owned it originally.
NOW THINK ABOUT WHAT
JUBILEE IS FORESHADOWING.
There's a ''JUBILEE'' coming. WE LOST THE LAND! We were
created to rule over this earth but we lost it! When the year of
JUBILEE occurred, it was not only a JUBILEE because the
land was returned and set free from its ''bondage'' so to speak but
slaves were also set free. In the land of Israel, when a man could
not not pay a debt, he would sell himself in slavery to another
person and he would be a slave all the years until JUBILEE.
When JUBILEE came he would be released from his servitude.
EVERY 50TH YEAR.
THE LAW
OF THE GOEL
or
KINSMAN REDEEMER
But suppose that from the time of
your birth you had been sold into slavery. Fifty years is a long
time! Especially when man only has threescore and ten to live! So
there was another way out of slavery, THE LAW OF THE GOEL or
the KINSMAN REDEEMER (Goel;
see also
Kinsman-Redeemer Goel). In the same chapter that talks about the YEAR OF JUBILEE,
he talks about the
KINSMAN REDEEMER. And
Kay believes that Jesus Christ is our Kinsman Redeemer
and the role that Jesus is fulfilling in Revelation 5 (Re 5:5, 6-note) when he walks into the
midst of the throne and takes the scroll from the One who is sitting
on the throne (Re 5:7-note), He is saying
''I am fallen man's KINSMAN REDEEMER
and I have come to redeem what man has lost."
When Adam & Eve sinned in that garden they became SLAVES TO SIN.
(Ro 6:16)
WHAT ELSE HAPPENED IN THE
GARDEN?
THEY WERE ''MURDERED''! How? They were ALIVE but when they sinned
the died and from that time on they were DEAD in their trespasses
and sins (Ge 2:17, Ro 5:12-note,
Eph 2:1-note).
In John 8:43 Jesus turns to the
religious leaders and says
Why
do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot
hear My word.
WHY CAN'T THEY HEAR JESUS'
WORD? He answers by
saying...
John 8:44 "You are of [your]
father the DEVIL, and you want to do the desires of your father. He
was a MURDERER FROM THE BEGINNING, and does not stand in the
truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie,
he speaks from his own [nature;] for he is a liar, and the father of
lies."
So when Adam and Eve sinned, they lost their crown, they lost the
right to rule the earth that had belonged to them (cp Ge 3:17, 18,
19; He 2:8-note), and Satan became
the prince over this world (Eph 2:2-note,
Lk 4:6, 1Jn 5:19, Acts 26:18). The result was that all creation was
subjected to futility and all creation is groaning (Ro 8:20, 21-note,
Ro 8:22-note) and suffering
right now, waiting until the redemption of man (Ro 8:23-note), until man receives
back his crown and his right to rule!
SO WHAT 3 THINGS DID
MAN LOSE WHEN ADAM SINNED?
(1) The LAND and the RIGHT TO RULE over the earth
(2) HIS LIFE. HOW? He was MURDERED!
(3) If man became a SLAVE what
did he lose? HE LOST HIS FREEDOM but as Jesus said
if the Son shall set you free, you shall be free
indeed (Jn 8:36)
So in the wonderful awesome mystery of His plan in the books of
Leviticus (and Numbers) God gives us the principles of THE KINSMAN
REDEEMER.
A REDEEMER is a one who
BUYS BACK.
A REDEEMER is a person that goes into the market
place and PURCHASES SOMETHING.
So JESUS becomes OUR REDEEMER.
John records that Jesus
didst PURCHASE (Ed:
Greek = agorazo, for discussion of related verb exagorazo = to buy slaves out of the market place)
for God with Thy
blood men from
every tribe, and tongue and people and nation.' (Rev 5:9-note)
HOW DID JESUS DO THIS?
By becoming our KINSMAN, by becoming flesh and blood, by
becoming a MAN. So He became a Man and as our KINSMAN-REDEEMER
He redeemed us out of slavery, He redeemed us from death and gave us
life ,and He redeemed the land (the earth). And this is what we
see Jesus doing beginning in Revelation 6 as He breaks the seal,
beginning the cataclysmic events that continue UNTIL the kingdom of
this world becomes the kingdom of our Christ.
THE BLOOD AVENGER
The KINSMAN-REDEEMER was also called the BLOOD AVENGER (see
Nu 35:19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27). If I put another
person to death, the slain person's KINSMAN would come and have THE
RIGHT to put me to death.
WHO MURDERED YOU and ME?
Satan.
So what does our
KINSMAN REDEEMER do when He opens the scroll and breaks the seals?
What happens to the Devil?
The devil is eventually cast into the lake of fire, where the worm
dies not and the fire is not quenched. This LAKE OF FIRE by the way
was never prepared for man but was prepared originally for the devil
and his angels (Mt 25:41),
the third of the stars that followed the dragon when he defected
from God. So Jesus our
KINSMAN-REDEEMER also
became our BLOOD
AVENGER.
REDEMPTION OF THE LAND
Jesus also becomes the
REDEEMER
OF THE LAND that has been sold to another. To be sure, the Jews were
excited in the YEAR OF JUBILEE. But we have a JUBILEE coming like no
one has ever seen because we have a KINSMAN REDEEMER
that is going to take the scroll out of the hand of Him Who sits on
the throne and He is going to break the seals which culminate in the
Kingdom of this world become the Kingdom of His Christ. We will have
a new heaven and a new earth.
REDEMPTION OF SLAVES
Finally, as alluded to earlier, Jesus our KINSMAN REDEEMER also REDEEMS US and SETS US FREE,
by buying us out of slavery to sin and to Satan.
This story of the Kinsman-Redeemer is beautifully portrayed
in the book of Ruth (Ed:
Click for notes on this
website covering the book of Ruth) in which we see Boaz take the
role of the kinsman-redeemer and marry the Ruth the Moabitess. When
Boaz redeemed Ruth, they brought forth a SEED that would be
in the line of the
MESSIAH because their
son OBED fathered a son named JESSE and Jesse had
several sons, one of whom was named DAVID. And all of this
transpired because kinsman redeemed his Ruth. What a wonderful
story!
WORTHY IS
THE LAMB!
BREAK YOUR SEALS!
LET THE FOUR RIDERS OF THE APOCALYPSE COME FORTH!
LET IT HAPPEN!
THEN...
THE KINGDOM OF THIS WORLD
WILL BECOME THE KINGDOM OF OUR CHRIST!
and
HE SHALL REIGN FOREVER AND EVER.
(Re 11:15)
IF YOU KNOW JESUS CHRIST, YOU ARE AN OVERCOMER (1Jn 5:4,5) AND ARE ON THE
WINNING SIDE!
BUT IF YOU DON'T KNOW HIM, the reason that He has not come yet is
because He is not willing that you should perish but that you should
come to REPENTANCE and FAITH in the Lord Jesus Christ so that you
might come to know Him as your
BLOOD AVENGER
and your KINSMAN
REDEEMER.
AND IF THE
SON SHALL SET YOU FREE
YOU SHALL BE FREE INDEED.
(Jn 8:36)