Revelation 5:5
“But one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.’”
Revelation 4 and 5 takes us on a heavenly tour, and with an all access pass, we are brought into the throne room of Jehovah God. There, we are privileged to observe as the saints and angels worship at His feet. Suddenly, the scene shifts from the throne to a scroll in the hand of God. All of Heaven seems fixated on this scroll and its contents. John is never told exactly what this scroll is, but it has been suggested by some, that it is the title deed to the earth.
Going all the way back to the beginning at the garden of Eden, we find that all of creation was given to mankind to enjoy. It did not take long before man’s rights were forfeited through sin, and all of creation was brought under bondage. At that moment, God’s plan of redemption began to unfold. Adam and Eve were promised that God would raise up a Savior who would make all things right. As the centuries moved forward, prophet after prophet spoke of the coming Messiah, who would free us from the bondage of sin, and establish His righteous reign over the earth.
In the heavenly scene, we find all heaven weeping because no one is found worthy to open the title deed to the earth and redeem it. No one, that is, until the Lion of the Tribe of Judah enters. Suddenly, all attention turns from the Scroll to the Lion. John also turns and describes what he saw, “A Lamb who had been slain.” The only one, in all of heaven and earth, worthy to hold the title deed to heaven and earth, is the one whose blood was shed to redeem us. Heaven’s choir breaks forth in song again, as angel and saint herald praise to the Worthy One.
“You are worthy to take the scroll,
And to open its seals; for You were slain,
And have redeemed us to God by Your blood
Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
And have made us kings and priests to our God;
And we shall reign on the earth.”
Jesus alone is worthy of our praise, for Jesus alone has set us free from the bondage of sin and death, and given us the hope of Heaven’s reward. While we will one day join the heavenly chorus, we need not wait that long, we can fall at the feet of the Worthy One now, and celebrate the promise of eternal life.
Pastor Jim
Israel, in Ezekiel’s day, was a mess. The people had long ago left the Word of God and chose to follow the ways of the world around them. This led them into gross immorality, putting them at odds with God. As a result, the Babylonians were fast approaching the city and the people would be destroyed. Prophet after prophet had filled the airwaves with warnings of coming judgment and the way of escape. Sadly however, instead of turning to the Lord, the people remained entrenched in their immoral ways, hoping against reality, that life would continue unchanged, regardless of their backslidden state. All the while, God was looking for men and women who would respond to him in repentance and obedience, but none were found. In many ways times have not changed, God is still looking for those who will build a wall and stand in the gap.
Paul penned some of the most encouraging words ever written when he wrote,
John looked into the future of mankind and saw the day when the heavens will open, not to speak, but to call home all who have trusted in Christ for salvation. Paul explained that the dead in Christ would rise first, and we who are alive and remain will be caught up together in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). What a day that will be, when we are no longer looking through a glass dimly, but we are face to face with Christ (I Corinthians 13:12) steeped in His glory.
What a beautiful and insightful way Jesus describes Himself to the church. He tells us three things about Himself.
The Bible is filled with seemingly paradoxical statements. Here God promises to bring the low high and the high low. The context makes it clear that the low are those who willingly submit themselves to His ways, and the high are those exalt their own opinions above the teaching of the Word of God. James said essentially the same thing when he wrote,
It seems we have become a generation who blames our faults on others. No one wants to take responsibility for their own actions. Attitudes of the heart, as well as sinful behavior, are often blamed on our upbringing or our genetics. As much as this may seem like a modern problem, Ezekiel reveals this is actually a human nature problem. 2600 years ago this attitude was so commonplace it was captured in a proverb; the people could be heard saying,
n a very poetic fashion, Jesus describes Himself walking through and observing the goings on, in the church of Ephesus. It is both encouraging and frightening to know that Jesus is so involved with His church. He knows, and intimately describes, the affairs of the church, both good and bad. While He has much that is positive to share, the indictment He brings overshadows their successes. He declares they have left their first love.
Ezekiel has gone to great lengths to explain the judgment Judah is under, because they had forsaken God and followed after their own desires. He compared them to the city of Sodom that had received divine judgment for their sinful behaviors. He even went a step further, explaining they were worse than Sodom, because their sin was committed despite the fact that they had been chosen by God, and given His word as their guide. In the midst of declaring the penalty for their sins, Ezekiel brings up the mercy of God by reminding them of His everlasting covenant. That covenant was made with their father Abraham, before they were ever born, and is even stronger than the sins they have committed.
Recently, my wife and I went shopping for wood flooring. We were actually quite surprised by the number of choices available to us. We found cherry, oak, pine, bamboo and a plethora of other woods from which to choose. Upon reflection, however, I did not notice any grapevine flooring. As I recall, when we shopped for furniture, we found the same thing to be true. Lots of wood choices, that never included grapevine. In the text, God makes reference to the fact that the wood of a vine is not even suitable for making a hook upon which to hang anything. Why then would He refer to this wood as being better than other woods of the forest? The answer is found in the words of Jesus.
Jim Gallagher 