Seven Seals and Our Bible
We believe
that the Christian Bible is the Seven Sealed
Scroll seen in the book of Revelation. (Revelation 5:1) This Scroll
(the Bible) is only “open to” (understood by) those who have truly accepted
Jesus Christ (the Lamb of God) as their Lord - God and Savior. (Isaiah 29:18) Through
the gift of the Holy Spirit, God’s word is open unto us now in this time, the church age - dispensation. (John
14:26)Though we will never fully understand ALL
of God’s word in this life He reveals enough to get us where we need to go. (1st
Corinthians 13:12)
Just as Moses
was commanded to make a “copy” of the tabernacle in heaven, the written Bible is a “copy” of the
unadulterated Word of God in heaven and gifted to us.
During the
time of the first apostles “title deeds”
(property deeds) were written on scrolls and sealed with wax seals. (Jeremiah
32:8-15; Ruth 4:1-14) The person who purchased a title deed was called the “redeemer”.
(Ruth4:1) These title deeds, if good, contained the entire history of the land
or property in question. It (the scroll) was usually written on both sides
(Jeremiah 32:8-15).
There were two
copies made…one sealed and one open.
(Jeremiah 32:11)
So our
Christian Bibles are copies of this important “title deed” – the “open” copy.
Our Bibles contain the will of God
and God loves us so much that he has given us the complete story in the Bible
(written on “both sides” – Old & New Testaments). We call it “the Vision of ALL”. (Isaiah 29:11)
God reveals more
through Time
As the
Christian Church has moved throughout time it has experienced six eras of
growth. (Revelation ch.2&3) We understand these growth phases of the church
to be explained for us by Christ Himself through His counsel to the “seven churches”.
As of the year 1900 AD we have entered the seventh and final phase of the
church – the seventh church period known as the Laodicean Era. (this based on the historic records of the church)
"The character of the Church today is Laodicean, and as the Laodicean Period is to continue until the Church of the "New Born" is taken out, we cannot hope for any great change until the Lord comes back." ~ C.Larkin
"The character of the Church today is Laodicean, and as the Laodicean Period is to continue until the Church of the "New Born" is taken out, we cannot hope for any great change until the Lord comes back." ~ C.Larkin
These
mysteries - found and properly taught
- in God’s word are never to be taken lightly. “So then, men ought to regard us (apostles) as servants of Christ and
as those entrusted with the secret
things of God.” (1
Corinthians 4:1)
There are Seven Dispensations and seven
distinct covenants which introduce these seven dispensations in the Bible. Part of understanding Gods word means that we
understand the sevenfold mysteries, the septenery mysteries. (7 Seals, 7 Trumpets, 7 bowls of God’s Wrath,
Seven Dispensations...etc.)
Dispensations
are periods of time in which covenants/agreements are made between God and
humanity. The Bible teaches that seven main
covenants have been given throughout God’s dealing with humanity. We
serve a covenantial God; He has been in constant relationship with His
creation throughout our space/time continuum. The “Seven
Seals” unroll all the dispensations unto us – an outline of the
entire Plan of Salvation. In other
words, God’s Word is full of septenery mysteries (mysteries in sets of seven).
*Most will
never understand:
Planetary Review
As Jesus
Christ opens His copy in heaven, He perhaps begins to review each of the Seven Dispensations, the entire history
of our planet – the planet that He
created and came back for. Remember, His copy is perfect…the Perfect
Translation of the Bible! (Every word
shall come to a complete fulfillment!) When Jesus begins to do this
opening of the sealed Scroll in heaven Satan gets angry and begins his campaign
against Christ here on earth.
Satan does not want Jesus to fully reclaim this planet.
Satan does not want Jesus to fully reclaim this planet.
Many people
think that the opening of each seal is translating what Satan is doing on earth
or that the Seven Sealed Scroll is merely a scroll which contains final
judgments. The fact is Jesus will be judicially acting out His right to reclaim
His “purchased possession”. The Seven Sealed Scroll represents the finality and
perfection of God’s WORD…..which tangibly is our Holy Bible. It is the title deed to this planet.
When the
Christian bible came together in its finality it became the open copy of this planet’s “title deed”
(Jeremiah 32:11). It (the Bible) is open
to the Christian Church through the “revelation of Jesus Christ”, yet it is not fully understood by the
Christian Church. “Written on both sides” denotes the Old & New
Testaments. Enough has always been made known for a person to hear the Good News
and accept Jesus Christ as Savior (Luke 24:27).
The “closed copy” of the scroll (the perfect translation of the Bible – the Scriptures) is depicted as a “sealed scroll” in heaven awaiting its opening. This means that the “redeemer” has a time coming soon when He claims back fully His “purchased – title deed”. The Scriptures say that we were “bought with a price” and that Jesus became “poor” that we might become “rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).
Why is He
waiting to fully reclaim? Because through the Apostle Paul’s ministry the plan
of God is calling in people from “every
nation, kindred, tribe and tongue” (Romans 11:13). Apostle Paul made known
the “mystery of the church”
and when the last Gentile that is going to get saved gets saved, this church
age shall close (Romans 11:25).
We are
promised that the “sealed book (scroll)” would be more fully open to us
(Christians) in the last days (Isaiah 29:18; 29:24; Daniel 12:9). Some of these mysteries are spoken
of in the parables of Jesus. Jesus said; “The secret of the kingdom has been
given to you (true Christians). But to those on the outside everything is said
in parables…” (Mark 4:11)
God promises…;”In
days to come you will understand it clearly.” (Jeremiah 23:20)
We
(Christians) are to “eat” the Word of God and through prayer gain understanding. The prophet Ezekiel
in a vision saw God’s word (message) in the form of a scroll and he was commanded to figuratively “eat it” (take it all
in, understand it). We read about this in Ezekiel ch.3.
Our attitude
toward the Scriptures (the Christian Bible) governs our conceptions and
conclusions. We hold to Sola Scriptura (the Bible Alone).
Our teachings do not allow for additions or subtractions from God’s word. All
of our biblical doctrine must be found in Scripture and taught from
Scripture. Having stated that, we also
recognize the importance of understanding other things such as the Seven Rules
of Biblical Interpretation which help substantiate additional facts.
The best
evidence of the importance of our ministry is transformed human lives. Those who have studied here and
become regenerated children of God are the bright
lights of this planet. They are learning the Scroll, the Will of God.
True Christianity is not a religion; it is a way of life. True Christianity is
a healthy relationship with God, Divine Intelligence.
I hope that
these thoughts help you gain a deeper respect of God, His Word and the
importance of properly understanding it all. May God continue to richly bless
you with proper doctrine and proper living.
Always in the presence of my Lord and
Saviour, Jesus Christ,
Eric William King (September 10th 2019)
All rights reserved. Permission has been given to share this article
Some more insight by a Bible Student..............
Anyone who has bought a house or a piece of property is familiar with a title deed. Properly executed, a deed establishes legal ownership. In fact, the modern term “Title Company” commonly refers to commercial businesses that make it their specialty to research, secure and officially record ownership titles. What is true in the modern world was equally true in the ancient world. Property laws in ancient law codes, like the Code of Hammurapi, describe accounts of sales, receipts and deeds—even to the point of authenticating the document through a notary. Even an ancient buyer had to be sure of the seller’s title!
In the Bible, we encounter such a title deed in the career of Jeremiah, when God instructed the prophet to purchase a piece of property from his cousin Hanamel ben Shallum (Jer. 32:6-16). Here, the deed of sale was signed, sealed and witnessed. It is of special interest to note that the title deed is described as being sealed, but that alongside it there also was an unsealed document. The unsealed document served as an abstract—a description of the property and terms accessible to anyone who wanted to read it. The sealed title, on the other hand, had to be preserved from any changes, which is why it was sealed in order to remain sacrosanct. Both documents were deposited by Jeremiah in a clay jar for safe keeping, much as hundreds of years later the people at Qumran deposited their precious scrolls in clay jars.
Sometimes, the “sealed” and “unsealed” documents were combined into a single document. To understand this, one must appreciate the fact that typically scrolls were inscribed on only a single side. (Imagine, for instance, trying to read a scroll on both sides as it is being unrolled.) After a scroll was sealed, however, one could write the abstract that originally was on a separate document on the outside of the sealed scroll (which would be the backside). As such, the contents of the sealed scroll remained intact, but the abstract, which now appeared on the outside of the sealed scroll, did not require a second document. This type of text gains the technical name of a “double-deed”, and such a text, written on both sides, is called an opisthrograph. Good examples are known from ancient Mesopotamia. You also can find one briefly referenced in Ezekiel, when in his commission the prophet was shown a scroll written on both sides. Two excellent ancient examples of such double-deeds can be found in the Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, New York and the Israel Department of Antiquities and Museums, Jerusalem. The latter was discovered at Elephantine, a Jewish community in the 5th century BC in Egypt. Both deeds are secured with a cord, and over the knots in the cord is a clay bulla, a lump of clay which has been impressed with a seal to secure the document. Printed in Hebrew characters on the outside of the sealed document is the Hebrew word for “Deed”.
This brings us to just such a double-deed in the New Testament. In the Apocalypse of John, the elder John is shown a scroll “written on both sides and sealed with seven seals.” Almost certainly, this scroll represents an ancient title deed. Indeed, archaeologists have discovered a very similar deed—one tied with seven cords, no less, each cord sealed with its own bulla—at Wadi Daliyeh near Jericho. (This one also is preserved in Jerusalem by the Israel Department of Antiquities.) John seems to know the meaning of the sealed scroll, but he is distressed that no one is able to open the seals. Whatever this vision means, the seven-sealed scroll seems to represent a title deed to something, and the only one able to open the scrolls—the only one who is entitled to do so—is the Lamb. This factor, in turn, likely reflects on the Lamb’s qualifications to be a redeemer or buyer, for such a title under Israelite redemption laws could only be “bought back” by someone who was in the family. I would suggest that the seven-sealed scroll represents the title deed of the world. God intends to reclaim the world as the final act in his redemptive purpose, and this includes not only the final redemption of his own people but also the judgment and overthrow of evil.
The redemptive ability of Jesus Christ to open the scroll, as in ancient times, rested on his qualifications. He was both willing and able, and he was a close relative who was descended from Judah and David. Most important, he was the Redeemer of the people of God. The seven seals clearly signify events to occur on the earth (6:1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12; 8:1). If the seven-sealed scroll is such a double-deed, it suggests that God intends to reclaim a world which has been infiltrated by evil, and the final stage of this reclamation will come in the climactic events described in the Revelation. The Lamb who was slain, who already has procured salvation for all humans through the cross and resurrection, is worthy to open the seals, heralding the consummation. In the end, the foremost plea in the Lord's Prayer will be answered. His kingdom will come--his will shall be done (Mt. 6:10; Rv. 11:15)!
If this interpretation that the seven-sealed scroll represents the title deed to the world is allowed to stand, then the opening of the seven seals represents precursors to the end. The idea that judgments would be poured out upon the world before the end is strongly rooted in the Hebrew prophets. Some of the passages in Revelation describing the opening of the seals directly allude to such Old Testament texts, such as, people hiding in the caves of the earth for fear (Is. 2:19//Rv. 6:15), the darkening of the sun and the moon turning to blood (Is. 13:10; 24:23; Eze. 32:7; Jl. 2:10, 30-31; 3:15//Rv. 6:12), the rolling up of the sky like a scroll and the falling of the stars like figs (Is. 34:4//Rv. 6:13-14), and the giving of the nations over to slaughter (Is. 13:15-18; 34:2-3; Eze. 32:3-6; Jl. 2:1-9//Rv. 6:4). The Book of Daniel, while not listing such stereotypical woes, generalizes that prior to the end there would occur "a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of the nations until then" (Da. 12:1), and Jesus reiterated this statement (Mt. 24:21//Mk. 13:19). Such trauma, sometimes referred to as the "woes of messiah," was a characteristic of Jewish apocalyptic in the intertestamental period and later. Lists of disasters and cosmic disruptions describe the darkening of the sun, the turning of the moon to blood, the shaking of the mountains (Testament of Moses, 10), plagues of pestilence, famine, earthquakes, war, and hail (Apocalypse of Abraham, 30; 2 Baruch, 70).
Admittedly, this interpretation takes the Book of Revelation in a futuristic sense (and for whoever wants to know, I follow historic premillennialism as an interpretive model). Those who adopt a preterist or historicist model for interpreting the book will doubtless find other explanations for the opening of the seven seals. Nonetheless, however, one interprets the final meaning of the Apocalypse of John, the imagery of a title deed embodied in the seven-sealed scroll should remain a constituent part of the interpretive process.
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“Many people think that the opening of each seal is translating what Satan is doing on earth or that the Seven Sealed Scroll is merely a scroll which contains final judgments. The fact is, Jesus will be judicially acting out His right to reclaim His “purchased possession”. The Seven Sealed Scroll represents the finality and perfection of God’s WORD…..our Holy Bible.” ~ E.W.King
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