FROM THE CANDLESTICK TO THE THRONE
Part
77
THE SEVEN-SEALED BOOK
And I saw in the right hand of Him
that sat on the throne a book written within and
on the backside, sealed with seven seals
(Rev. 5:1).
John the
Revelator, as he entered upon the marvelous visions recorded in the book of Revelation,
saw a door opened in heaven and heard a voice as of a trumpet speaking with him, saying,
Come up hither, and I will show thee things
The door opened in heaven bespeaks of an entrance
granted into a realm beyond the flesh, beyond the physical and psychical senses, into the
realm of the Spirit. That is where John
entered and that is the character of the things John saw.
He beheld heavenly things spiritual realities. He saw a throne set in heaven he perceived
the authority, power, and dominion of the Spirit. He
saw living creatures in the throne, the principle of manifest life in the Spirit. He saw the four living creatures in the midst of
the throne and twenty-four elders round about the throne, the King-Priest ministry of the
Melchizedekian Order after the power of an endless life the ministration of the
redemptive power of the divine life unto creation. It
is being seen by a vast company of people that hears the voice of the Lord in this hour
that a door has opened in the heavenlies through which those who are obedient shall enter
into a state of being and a ministry of unsurpassed and unimaginable glory in the throne zone! That
is the message of chapter four of the Revelation!
The fifth chapter of the book of Revelation represents a scene in heaven the
realm of Spirit. A book is held in the right hand of the Majesty on high, in the hand of
Him who sits upon the throne of Omnipotence. The
scene is purely symbolic and spiritual! God
is omnipresent spirit. God never sat on a throne. He never held a book in His right hand. Let us notice THE ONE ON THE THRONE DID NOT
HAVE AN IMAGE! According to Revelation 4:2-3
all John saw on the throne was colors, beautiful colors.
And yet, John saw One sitting there! What
about this One that sat on the throne, that could be seen, and yet, was not visible to the
natural eye? He had no form, only radiance! John was not looking into the natural elements
when he saw the One on the throne. The
scripture says he was in the Spirit on the Lords day!
John stood in the very reality of heaven as he was caught up into the
highest realm of the Spirit. The One he saw was spirit. Do
not look, my beloved, at the throne of God as a natural seat sitting there for a physical
being to sit on. Dont imagine a
throne-like chair! His throne is the
dimension of His omnipotent power. Here
seated, as it were, in the splendor of the omnipresent heavenly-spiritual realm John
beheld One of many colors. Even though He did
not have a figure, John could see Him in and by the Spirit.
And in and by the same Spirit John could see a book in the right hand of him
that sat on the throne! The book is the
symbol of the revelation of Himself in and through a people.
The book was not
a book as we know books, but a scroll of papyrus or parchment, written on both sides,
rolled up and sealed with seven seals. The
ancient scrolls of Israel were generally sheepskin rolls.
One writer has observed that the book of Romans would require a roll of
parchment almost twelve feet long; the Gospel of Mark, nineteen feet; and the Revelation
itself would require a roll at least fifteen feet long.
This can give you some idea of the picture we have before us. Now, when John says that the scroll was sealed
with seven seals, it does not mean that the seals covered the outside, but the scroll was
rolled up to a certain point, and then at that point there was a seal put upon the very edge so that it could not be opened. Then it was rolled up again a little farther and
the second seal was put on and so on until all the scroll of parchment was written in
seven parts, or sections, and sealed at the end of each section, and thus it was sealed
with seven seals. It will be seen that there
were six seals on the edge of the scroll, and one seal on the outside fastening the entire
scroll, which became the first seal to be opened.
The book is in the right hand of Him who
sits upon the throne. Stupendous words! Words of deepest mystery, enshrouding the eternal
purpose of God. The scriptures portray the right hand of God as the hand of strength, power,
salvation, blessing, and anointing. The
implication is that the right hand of God is the good
hand of God doing wondrous things! The
psalmist confirms this when he says, In Thy presence is fullness of joy, at Thy right hand are pleasures forevermore (Ps.
16:11). Again, The voice of rejoicing and salvation in the tabernacles of the righteous:
the right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly. The right
hand of the Lord is exalted (Ps. 118:15-16).
To this the prophet Isaiah adds his inspired testimony: Fear thou not;
for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness (Isa. 41:10). In the Old Testament, whenever God is portrayed as
manifesting His power, it is done so with His right hand or arm. Thy right
hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power (Ex. 15:6). O sing unto the Lord a new song; for He hath
done marvelous things: His right hand, and His
holy arm, hath gotten Him the victory (Ps. 98:1).
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou wilt revive me; Thou shalt
stretch forth Thine hand
Thy right hand
shall save me (Ps. 138:7). Numerous
other Psalms express the same thought. In the
New Testament, after His resurrection and ascension, Jesus was by the right hand of God exalted, and made to sit at His right hand (Acts 2:33-34; Heb. 1:3,13).
This speaks of
Jesus Christ, the firstborn Son, our Forerunner. He
is exalted to the right hand of God! This is therefore the calling of every son of God! He is the positive,
saving, redeeming force of God in the universe who is gone into heaven
(spiritual realm of government) and is on the right
hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being
made subject unto Him (I Pet. 3:22). There
is no greater prize than oneness with Christ. The inspired apostle exhorted the saints in
Colosse, If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where
Christ sitteth at the right hand of God
(Col. 3:1). The message is clear the
elect of God are to SEEK THE THINGS OF CHRIST AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD! Seek the things of the right hand! What
a word is that! There are your orders, dear
child of God who treasures the hope of sonship.
People
tell us that we are too concerned with deep things
and with high things. Nothing could be higher than the realm of
Gods right hand! Seek it! Seek
it! Seek it! That is the word of the Lord to every one who is
conscious of being risen with Christ. Seek to be strong in the Lord and in the power of
His might! Seek the anointing of His power! Seek the
investment of His authority! Seek to rule and reign with Christ! Seek to
be victorious in all things! Seek to be a blessing to creation! Seek
to be His salvation unto all the ends of the earth! Seek to speak and act and rule by His love! Seek to
do wondrous things in His name! Seek to reconcile and restore all things and all
men to God! That is what it means to seek the things of Christ at the right hand of God! Some of the greatest truths of the word of God are
the ones that lie hidden like pearls of great price, unnoticed by the careless but
available to all who will search prayerfully and diligently in the depths of God.
The right hand
of God is not a physical location somewhere in the universe. The right hand of God is a realm of power and
authority, a position of eminence, a condition and a state of divine being. Blessed be God!
We now have a share in the REALM OF THE RIGHT HAND! The apostle Paul tells us that when we were
dead through our trespasses, God made us alive together with Christ
and raised us up
with Him, and made us sit together with Him in
the heavenly places (the heights of His own exaltation). This shows that as we come to know the
resurrection life of Christ, we are also made to experience the ascension of Christ.
This is a matter of realization, of consciousness, of appropriation! It is already true in Christ, but it is only true to us as we receive the revelation of it,
acknowledge the reality, and experientially lay hold upon it. We are chosen of God not only to be made alive
from the dead and have Gods life, but also to sit in the highest realm of the
heavenlies as ascended men! This is the present truth of God for everyone who
has received the call to sonship. He is
causing every son of God to consciously and experientially ascend with Christ and sit with
Him in the higher than all heavens NOW!
It is true therefore that as we ascend
into the high places of God in the spirit, we are reigning with Christ from His heavenly,
spiritual throne. As we truly become
overcomers by the ascended life of Christ, we are also given power over the nations to
rule them with a rod of iron, and as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to
shivers (Rev. 2:26-27). This rule is given
to the overcomers in Christ! As the life of ascension within us raises up
kingdom dominion in our lives we truly begin to reign with Christ in the spirit, and all
the worldly powers of man can be broken by the authority within Gods sons! The will and ways of man are being displaced by
the power of the spirit and replaced by the spiritual life of the kingdom of God. We are a spiritual people. And the kingdom of God is the spiritual realm of
our Fathers dominion! Therefore our
reign in Christ is a spiritual reign, which is accomplished as we move in and by His
Spirit in relation to things in the earth realm. As
the anointing teaches us what we should pray for, and what situations and circumstances in
the outer world we should speak to by the spirit, the creative power of God is released to
bring change and transformation. Through that
spiritual dominion Gods will is brought to pass on earth as it is in heaven!
The right hand
signifies authority and power. Peter referred
to this when he declared to the multitude on the day of Pentecost, This Jesus hath
God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore
being by the right hand of God exalted, and
having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, hath shed forth this, which
ye now see and hear (Acts 2:32-33). Later
Peter told the rulers of Israel, The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye
slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God
exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a
Saviour (Acts 5:30-31). Paul spoke of
the mighty power and the awesome authority and dominion and the riches of the glory that
is the inheritance of the saints. He says
that this is the very same power that God wrought in Christ when He raised Him from
the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in
the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and
every name that is named (Eph. 1:20-21). The
writer to the Hebrews expressed the truth this way,
when He had by Himself
purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of
the Majesty on high; being made so much better than angels
(Heb. 1:3-4).
Scripture could
be piled upon scripture showing that the right hand of God is the position of the very
highest authority and power in the universe. And
scripture could be piled upon scripture to show that it was the crucified, resurrected,
and ascended man Jesus who was raised up to the
right hand of the Father! We have pictured
this as a literal throne somewhere in the sky. But
there is no literal throne, nor are there two Gods up there seated on a
throne! You see, my beloved, Jesus was and is
a man. Some
deny that Jesus is still a man! They tell us
to forget the man Jesus! They insist that if
we still reverence the man Jesus that we have made an idol out of the historical man of
Galilee. But the truth is that there IS
one mediator between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus (I Tim. 2:5). The truth is
that this man, after He had offered one
sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting
till His enemies be made His footstool (Heb. 10:12-13).
When the Son of
God came into this world He testified of His own humanity, declaring, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of
himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also
doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth
the Son, and showeth Him all things that himself doeth: and He will show Him greater works
than these, that ye may marvel (Jn. 5:19-20). The
humanity of Jesus had no more authority or power on earth than my humanity or your
humanity. It was the Father in Him and
through Him that did the works! Oh, the
wonder of it! While here in human flesh Jesus
manifested a measure of the omnipotence of deity, but clearly stated that the Father would
show Him greater works than those that He did. Now,
praise God, HE, the man Jesus, has been raised
up to that place where ALL POWER AND AUTHORITY IN HEAVEN AND IN EARTH is given into His
hands! And yet the mystery is just this. Jesus still
cannot of Himself express the omnipotence of
God! The Father is still showing Him the
greater works than those He did while on earth.
The deity still must
flow through Him!
If by the spirit
of revelation you can see the man Christ
Jesus seated in that position of universal authority and dominion, yet that very authority
and dominion flowing through Him from a source beyond
and greater than His glorified humanity, you will then be able to comprehend what it
means to be seated at the right hand of power, or on the right
hand of the Majesty on high! If Jesus
Christ has no humanity, if Jesus Christ is something other than a glorified man, if Jesus Christ is only deity, then
the heavenly scene of Christ at the right hand of power, or on the right
hand of God, is meaningless. It is a
misrepresentation and a deception. Oh, yes,
Jesus is Gods right hand man! The power is from God the eternal Father,
but it has been ordained to flow unto us by and through our Lord Jesus the Christ. Arent you glad!
John sees a book
in the right hand of Him who sits upon the
throne. This hand holds the book. A book is to be read, since it contains words of
information, instruction, counsel, or revelation. However,
God has no need for such a book, for He forgets nothing, learns nothing, and has perfect
knowledge of all things everywhere and of all His works from the beginning of the
creation. This book in Gods right hand
is for mankind and for the whole vast creation; it is Gods revelation of Himself
that is to be read and known of all men! It
is interesting to note that when Christ takes the book out of the
Fathers right hand, He does so with His own right hand. Therefore, when He opens the seals, He does so
with the book in His right hand. This reveals
the great truth that one of the fruits of His triumph is the power of His own right hand
of blessing and salvation to open the seals of Gods book of destiny, to unlock the
mystery of Christ in us, and to bring to the ultimate issue all the events that culminate
in the manifestation of the sons of God. Think
about it!
Beloved sons of
God, let us be fully aware of this great truth. All the sons of God are destined to sit in Christ and
with Christ upon the throne at the right hand of God!
There is a people that is possessing the right hand authority and power of
God. To him that overcometh will I
grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father
in His throne (Rev. 3:21). We have been
called to share His glory, the very same glory Christ now has with the Father! It is not robbery or blasphemy to proclaim that we
are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ. Many
in the sonship realm have sought a glory separate from the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no glory outside of His glory! There is no sonship outside of His sonship! There is no life outside of His life! There is no power outside of His power! There is no throne outside of His throne! Jesus Christ is at the right hand of the
Father, and all Gods sons are called and chosen and ordained to sit with Him there. We have a right to take our place in this right
hand position and declare the deity of the Father in us!
Multitudes of
Christian ministers today are ministering from the lowlands of religious traditions and
carnal church creeds and programs. We have a
higher calling in God! Only as we rise into
the heavens of Gods Spirit and minister unto the Lord and for the Lord from the
realm of His greater, spiritual presence in the most holy place of His throneship, shall
the blessings and benefits of His heavenly kingdom continue to change us and the world. Since heavens greatest desire is that the
sons of God be manifested, let us learn that we are
the book in the Fathers right hand and we must be taken by Jesus
Christ the Lord; He must rip off the seals from that book which we are so that there shall
be a revelation of the life of God that is written within.
Father has raised us up into a unique place in this spiritual temple of the
body of His sons. Our hearts cannot settle
for anything less, for we yearn and long and pray and seek His will to be done in earth as
it is in heaven. Nothing else will satisfy! Those who are called to sonship are experientially
ascending in the spirit to the high places in God. They
are recognizing and taking their rightful place on the throne of the Lord, by the Spirit,
where they reign with Christ.
Today we are
living in momentous times. Christ is opening
the seals of that book which we are to bring forth the revelation of Jesus Christ in us. We are living in a period between the ages, and
God is initiating a new order and ministry in the earth.
My prayer is that all who read these lines will see in the spirit this new ministry of the kingdom of God in the earth! When we ascend in the Spirit into the heavenlies
where Gods will is revealed to our hearts, and Gods word is put in our mouths,
and we worship and intercede and speak from the throne of the Lord, we then begin to
defeat all darkness and evil and put every enemy under Christs feet by releasing the
presence and power of the kingdom of God into the world.
This is a new ministry we are entering at this time, and it is real and very
powerful! Make no mistake about it
sons of God have a tremendous responsibility. Preaching
and ministering according to the old carnal methods and techniques of the church systems
will avail but little in this battle against the corrupt kingdoms of this world. Nor are we called to merely learn deeper truths;
we are called to RULE AND REIGN WITH CHRIST! The
world has not yet seen or read the revelation of Christ out of that book in the
Fathers right hand; they have only seen and read the creeds, programs, and
promotions of the religious systems. The
spiritual ministry from the throne of God out of the heavenly realms of the presence and
power of the Lord is the secret to conquering all evil and all darkness! We are called to possess the kingdom, to take the
kingdom, to take dominion over all darkness, sin, and death. We are first taking the dominion within ourselves,
then we shall be able to break the kingdoms of man to shivers, and to rule mankind and all
things as if we were shepherds tending a flock of sheep.
Thy right
hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power
(Ps. 15:6). While it is difficult for us to
conceive of God becoming something more than He already is, and as to His nature there can
never be any change, yet the Spirit reveals that the right hand of God had not previously been all that it
was when the children of Israel triumphantly marched dryshod through the Red Sea, for
the prophet speaks of a day wherein the right hand of the Lord is become glorious in power, denoting a process
in the unfolding of the power of His right
hand in the midst of men. And, while the
right hand of God is first and foremost the realm of Gods almighty power and
authority, His right hand became glorious in
power before the eyes of men when it was revealed in mighty signs and wonders through the
person of the man Moses.
Now there has
been a wonderful enlargement in the revelation of Gods right hand, for Jesus Christ
has been exalted to the realm of the right hand, and there shall be a further enlargement
when all the holy sons of God have been also exalted to sit with Christ in His throne in
all the power, authority, and glory that that means.
Thus Gods right hand is in fact becoming
a people, the Christ, Head and body, a many-membered son of the right hand, and the manifestation of
God in this right hand company is becoming even more glorious in power as the
appointed hour for the unveiling of the sons of God is fully fulfilled. These not only declare His word, but have
authority and ability to see it established in the earth and in all realms. As the power of God arises in all majesty in His
body of sons, and He is exalted in the people He has prepared, how unspeakably glorious
and majestic He will be in the eyes of His creation!
O sing unto the Lord a new song; for He hath
done marvelous things: His right hand and His
holy arm, hath gotten Him the victory. The
Lord hath made known His salvation: His righteousness hath He openly showed in the sight
of the nations. All the ends of the earth
have seen the salvation of our God. Let the
sea roar, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be
joyful together before the Lord; for He cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness
shall He judge the world, and the people with equity (Ps. 98:3,7-9). This is a prophecy!
Think of it the nations are ready to worship the Lord, His enemies
submit, and sing to His name; the ends of the earth and the whole world turn to Him because His right hand shall do marvelous things, and
He shall make known His salvation to all!
Truly, beloved,
this RIGHT HAND COMPANY will get Him the victory! There
is no doubt about it no devil, no wicked men, no conniving politicians, no hostile
nations, no massive armies can stop this company from doing the things God has declared
they will do, and because of their ministry, the nations will be joined to the Lord and
sing His praise. As the work of restoration
progresses, what harmony, what glorious unity and bountiful blessings and abundant life
shall fill the universe, as this order of King-Priests flows together, to gather together
into Christ all things in one, till all has been set in array, and God is indeed ALL IN
ALL.
How sweet shall
be the influence of this right hand company, the positive
force of Gods omnipotent energy, ministering His life, His love, His joy, His
peace, His righteousness, and His wisdom unto creation.
How thankful we are not to be numbered among those called to the left hand, to walk in darkness, and be vessels of
wrath. There is no harshness in the ministry
of the right hand oh yes, even the right hand dashes the enemies in
pieces but it is the destruction of the negative qualities that there might
be life. These
bring correction ministered in love, leading all mankind to the Fountain of Living Water,
feeding them in green pastures, causing them to lie down and rest, and not be afraid. Ah, we would SEEK THE THINGS OF THE RIGHT HAND!
THE BOOK CHRIST WITHIN
One writer has
pointed out that the seven seals of
Revelation are similar to graduation diplomas. In
some parts of the country, when a child completes the eighth grade, he receives a diploma. Then, upon graduating from high school, he
receives another. When he graduates from
college, he receives another diploma. If he
goes on to graduate school and graduates, he receives another. Thus, diplomas represent specific accomplishments
by the graduate. Much work and varied
experiences go into obtaining each diploma! With
each one, the skills of the graduate become more valuable and demand for his
accomplishments grow.
The Father also
designed that when the time came to open the seven-sealed book, there would be a careful
process connected to exposing the contents. The
process is the full disclosure of all that Christ
is! Christ Jesus possesses every power
that the Father has, for the deity in Jesus is
the almighty Father! However, the full glory
and authority of Christ has been hidden beneath the veil of our flesh, for we are the body of Christ and the
temple of God. The restoration of all men and
all things to God requires the full disclosure of Jesus Christ in and through His body on earth. So, the opening of each seal is connected to a
brighter and clearer revelation of all that Christ is!
As each seal opens, more of Christ is seen!
This is the revelation of Jesus Christ!
Can you not see the mystery? The
seven seals are similar to seven diplomas. As
each diploma reveals more about the accomplishments and worthiness of the graduate, so
each broken seal reveals more of the glory, wisdom, love, and power of Gods
wonderful Christ, Head and body!
Even though John
does not call the seven-sealed book the book of life in chapter five, he
clearly refers to this book as the Lambs book of life in other places in
the Revelation. John calls it the
Lambs book of life because it is
the only book the Lamb receives in the whole book of Revelation! Notice: All inhabitants of the earth will
worship the beast all whose names have not been written in the book of life
belonging to the Lamb
(Rev. 13:8).
the
inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the
foundation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast (Rev. 17:8). Nothing impure will ever enter it (New
Jerusalem), nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose
names are written in the Lambs book of life (Rev. 21:7). Can we not see by this that the Lambs
book is the very book the Lamb receives from
the right hand of God! And it is the
very book of HIS OWN LIFE WRITTEN IN A PEOPLE!
Four ministers
were once discussing the various translations of the Bible.
One liked the King James Version because of its majestic English; another
preferred the Revised Version of 1881 because of its literal translations of the original
language; the third chose James Moffatts translation for its up-to-date vocabulary. The fourth minister was silent. When pressed to express his opinion, he said,
I like my mothers translation best.
The others were surprised. We
had no idea that your mother had translated the Bible. Oh yes, he said, she translated it
into life, and it was the most convincing translation I ever saw!
Ah, Jesus never
carried a copy of the Old Testament when He taught the multitudes. I have in my library many Bibles including the
Literal Bible, the Comparative Bible, the Analytical Bible, the Emphasized Bible and the
Amplified Bible. But Jesus Himself is the
EXEMPLIFIED BIBLE! He is the PERSONIFIED
BIBLE! He is the true picture of His Father,
the Living Word of His Father. He is the full
and complete revelation (unveiling) of His Fathers life! Jesus in His humanity upon earth was the very first chapter of this marvelous book of the Life
of the Lamb! And now the Lamb of God, living
out His life in us, is the completion of the
Book! Through that blessed company conformed
to His image the world shall now, at last, read the rest of the story!
Many years ago the Indian Christian Mystic, Sadhu Sundar Singh, penned these
illuminating words: When I was in Palestine last month I thought about many things
and one thought that came to me was that our Lord did not write anything. It would have been a great thing if Jesus Christ would have written the Gospels Himself, but He did
not write a single word, neither did He ask His disciples to write. He did not say to them, I am going to
dictate, take down notes. The writers
in the Bible did not get inspiration by taking down notes but by living with the Word of
Life. That is why our Lord did not ask His
disciples to write anything! He says,
My words are spirit and they are life. It
is easy to write words in book form but it is difficult to put the spirit into words!
His life and spirit can only be put into the hearts of people and not into
the pages of books. Jesus Christ knew that
He was going to work on the hearts and not only through the pages of books end quote.
I do not know
how or why Christians came to the conclusion that the Lambs Book of Life is a
literal book in some far-off heaven somewhere. It
is the book of the life of the Lamb. Even the most die-hard literalist has enough sense
to understand that the Lamb is not a four-legged woolly little creature romping through
the pasture squealing, Baa
baa
baa!
We could preach on the lamb of God in any church in America and
everyone would agree that this lamb is not a barnyard animal. If the Lamb who opens the
book is not a four-legged lamb, it should not be difficult for anyone to
understand that the book is not a two-covered book! People do such sloppy thinking about such divine
and exalted things!
And
another book was opened, which is the book of life (Rev. 20:12). The book of life is called the book of the
life of the Lamb (Rev. 13:8). If I were
to give you a book entitled THE BOOK OF THE LIFE OF GEORGE WASHINGTON, you would
understand at once that it is a biography of the life of the first president of the United
States, George Washington. That book should
contain everything you always wanted to know about George Washington! Every detail of his life would be there. The portrait of his character and accomplishments
would be drawn there. In the same way, THE
BOOK OF THE LIFE OF THE LAMB is the autobiography of Gods Lamb, the expose of who He
is, what He is like, what He does. Everything
you ever wanted to know about the Son of God is contained in this wonderful book of the
life of the Lamb! It is not a literal book,
of course, for the sons and daughters of the Most High are the living record and revelation of the life of the
indwelling Lamb! It was to the apostle Paul
that the revelation was given that the book of life, the book of the life of the Lamb, the
book which draws the portrait of the life, nature, character, and accomplishment of the
Son of God IS A PEOPLE! Forasmuch
as Y-E are manifestly declared to be THE EPISTLE
OF CHRIST ministered by us, written not with ink,
but with the spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone, but in fleshy tables of the
heart (II Cor. 3:3).
The Lamb is our
Lord Jesus Christ! The Lord Jesus is seen by
John approaching the eternal Father to receive from His right hand the book that is sealed
but is now to be opened. What this book is,
becomes crystal clear when in holy contemplation we consider what it is that belongs to the Father, is then given to Jesus Christ, is subsequently opened by Him, and through that opening becomes the revelation of Jesus Christ! That is the mystery. When our divine and wonderful Christ communed with
the Father in His holy prayer in Gethsemane just hours before He offered Himself as
the Lamb slain, it was concerning this very scene John beheld in figure on
Patmos, that Jesus held discourse with His Father in heaven. I will quote the passage. Dear saint of God, read reverently and prayerfully
and the blessed Holy Spirit of truth will flood the passage with light.
I have glorified thee on the earth: I have
finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And
now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee
before the world was. I have manifested thy
name (nature) unto the men which thou gavest
me
thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever
thou hast given me are of thee. For I have
given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have
known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for
them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And now I am no more in the world, but these are
in the world, and I come to thee, Holy Father, keep through thine own name (nature) those whom thou hast given me, that they may be
one, as we are. As thou hast sent me into the
world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified
through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on
me through their word; that they all may
be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as
we are one
Father I will that they also whom
thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast
given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world (Jn.
17:4-11,18-24).
Can
you grasp the fact, dear reader, that our Lord, when speaking of those who were the
Fathers, who are now given to Him, who are also given the same glory that is His (at
the right hand of God!), and who are destined to be the revelation of that glory to the
ends of the earth can we not see that these
indeed are the book in the Fathers right hand, given to our Lord Jesus Christ! Opened by Him these are they who bring to pass in
the earth the revelation of Jesus Christ! The
revelation was given to Jesus (Rev. 1:1) when He came to earth to reveal the Father. Now we are given to Him, bone of His bone, flesh
of His flesh, and He is raised up within us to reveal through us the Father in the sons. Oh, the wonder of it!
A further
confirmation that this is precisely the meaning of the seven-sealed book is found in the
events that transpire as soon as the book is taken from the hand of the One upon the
throne a paean of praise breaks forth as the four living creatures (kingship) and
the twenty-four elders (priesthood) cry in rapturous exaltation, Thou art worthy to
take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and has redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and
tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us
unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth (Rev. 5:9-10).
The following
words from brother Paul Mueller shed precious insights into this wonderful Book of the
Right Hand. The fact is, the Bible as
we now know it will one day become obsolete for us. The
blessed book that we carry around, study and sometimes memorize, is to be imparted into
our lives so that we are truly epistles
known
and read by all men. This is not to
downgrade the Bible or to denigrate its effectiveness, authority, and inspiration. The book we call the Bible is, for the most part,
the inspired word of God, and we are truly and deeply grateful for all it means to us. However, our respect for the Bible will not alter
the great truth that it is Gods intention that we become His living word. Every truth that has been given by the Spirit will
eventually become a part of our lives, so that we will not need to turn to chapter and
verse for guidance and truth, but rather, that truth will be written and engraved upon our
lives so that we do by nature all the truth
the Bible contains to the glory of God.
The laws
and covenants of God were not intended to be repeated on the pages of the book we call the
New Testament. The old covenant clearly
states that the next time the Lord writes His
laws and covenant, it would be upon the hearts of His elect and chosen ones. The highest fulfillment of anything is to become
that which it contains and reveals. When we
have fully become the promised living epistles, manifesting the very Life of Christ, we
shall then be able ministers of the new covenant! Then
the law shall go forth of Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem (Mic. 4:2). It will not be the dead letter read from the pages
of a book, but the living, anointed truth of God coming forth from lives that have been
transformed by the power of that word! Many
nations shall then desire to come up to the house of the Lord, where dwell those living
epistles. Then shall they learn the ways of
the Lord from kings and priests who express the experiences of the Spirit. Then, many peoples and nations shall walk in the
paths of the Lord, for they will have witnessed the grand fulfillment of the new covenant
within an anointed and holy people.
Each
kingdom ruler will be like streams of water in a dry place, and like the shade of a great
rock in a wearisome land. The presence of
Christ will flow out of their lives like streams of water gushing from an overflowing
fountain. The glory, power, and life of the
Spirit will be so manifest that all who had ears but could not hear will then hear and
understand the truth of God clearly. Eyes
that once were blinded to revelation and reality will be opened by the power of the Spirit
that is flowing out of the elect. The minds
of those lacking true judgment and the ability to apprehend will then be able to
comprehend fully Gods abundant, redemptive love for them, as well as His living
truth. Then the tongue of the stammering will
be quick to speak plainly. The multitudes
will receive the anointed message of Life coming from those living epistles end quote.
How tragic that
the people of earth for the most part have never read this beautiful epistle of Christ, this glorious book of the life of the Lamb. They have poured over the books of religion, the
commentaries of learned scholars who write out of carnal minds with the words of
mans wisdom, the books of hypocrisy, the books of forms of godliness that deny the
power thereof, the books of dead doctrines, empty rituals, lifeless ceremonies, and
man-made rules and regulations of self-righteousness.
But precious few have ever seen the BOOK OF THE LIFE OF THE LAMB! Oh! What
a wonderful gospel shall fill the earth beneath and the celestial realms above when God
fully opens His holy book of Life! The book
of Life is that blessed company of the sons of God in whom the life of the Lamb is fully
and eternally formed! This book is being
carefully written word by word, sentence by sentence, paragraph by paragraph, page by
page, and chapter by chapter in the nitty-gritty of our daily experience with God until the full revelation of the Christ shall be
written therein. Times clock is
striking the hour for the manifestation of the
sons of God, the opening of Gods book of life people, and what a manifestation it
shall be! That book is being opened within us even now, for it is the spirit that giveth life. As Christ in our spirit is opened within
ourselves, the life of the Lamb is released to swallow up all sin and death.
God has a message for the world
the revelation of Jesus Christ! The message
is being written in flaming words of glory upon the pages of the lives and hearts and
minds of men and women who are dying to that impudent and death-dealing devil of self, in
order to walk and live by the spirit of HIS LIFE. I
am terribly at a loss for words to express the glory of Gods book of life company,
but I can assure you that once it is fully ready, prepared, and finished, it shall become
the worlds best seller throughout the ages to come! As the pen is mightier than the sword, so this
book, above any that has ever been written by the finger of man, shall alter the course of
history, and the dark covering that has been cast over the minds and hearts of the people
for ages and dispensations will be completely destroyed by the flood of transforming light
and wisdom and knowledge and glory and power shining forth from the living pages of
Gods eternal and incorruptible BOOK OF LIFE!
When John sees a
book written within and without and sealed with seven seals, he is not talking about the
Bible. He is not even talking about the book
of Revelation. Nor is he seeing what many
teachers describe as the title deed to the earth. He is talking about the book within that has been sealed, like the little
Shulamite maiden who was a fountain sealed (Song of Solomon 4:12). It is the book within, the book of Christ in us,
the book of the law of the spirit of life that has been sealed! John saw the new covenant that God would make with the house
of Israel whereof He says, I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in
their hearts (Heb. 8:10). Thats
what John saw! He perceived in spirit that
which is being written within. He saw where
you find the performance of the new covenant not in your own strength, not in your
self-effort, not in your fleshly ability, not in your religious conformity, but by the Life within. He discovered that Gods elect is becoming living epistles, not of the letter, the outward,
but of the spirit, the inward, because there is Life!
The
reason the word of God has bound and killed more people spiritually than it
has helped is because it has been legislated outwardly.
To these the word of God is a book full of laws and commandments
to be imposed on those who would live godly. Religion
makes godliness a law rather than a life! God
said! they thunder from their pulpits high upon the craggy pinnacle of mount Sinai,
and then lay an outward rule and observance upon the people extracted from an outward book.
To people who have been through the trauma of divorce they advise, You
can never be remarried; God says, I hate adultery, and you can only please God by
remaining single the rest of your life. They
kill people with the letter of the Word, not seeing the spirit, the compassion of God, the
love of God, the heart of God. People have
been forced to go to the world to find some judgment because they couldnt find it in
the church. They have been compelled to go to
the counselors of the world to find some understanding because the preachers had no grace,
no mercy, no wisdom from the Lord. Christian
ministers of the grace of God LEGISLATING THE
LAW! What an enigma! What a travesty!
But the Bible says! you contend.
You hypocrites! You dont
even know what the Bible says! You know the letter that kills! You have never perused the pages of the blessed
Book of the Life of the Lamb the spirit that gives life! The New Testament is not that black, leather-bound
book we call the Bible. The New Testament,
the true Bible, the Living Epistle of Christ is the law of His life written upon the
fleshy tables of the heart.
You,
precious child of God, are the epistle of
Christ, you are the book of the life of the Lamb, and every day God is writing in your book! Hes not writing for nothing for
your book is to be opened! And there is only
One who is worthy to take the book and loose the seals thereof, and that is the Lamb in
the midst of the throne. The Lamb! Oh, the wonder of it! The book is the book of the life of the Lamb. The opening of the book is the unveiling of the
life of the Lamb, the revelation of His life written and engraven in the minds and hearts
of those who share His nature. He is the One
who is worthy to take each one of us and open us up!
And it is only through Jesus Christ our Lord that we can be opened up as the
Book of the Life of the Lamb!
Multitudes of Gods people would rather remain a closed book. We wish to stay closed because of our unique
personality, we are shy, reticent, humble, immature, inexperienced, or burdened down with
sin-consciousness and condemnation. But I
declare unto you, my beloved, that when God has finished writing in you, when He completes
within you that living epistle which He knows is capable of being read and known of all
men, then He will open you up! As God breaks and removes the seals from off of
us, not only will great and mighty things take place in our own experience, but things
will begin to happen in the outer world. Why
is there such darkness over the earth, and gross darkness over the people? Because the very light of God is concealed within us. Although we are the light of the world, the light
is shut up. Although we have within us the
mighty River of Life, we are a fountain sealed. God
must work mightily in us to release the light of our lives that His glory may arise upon
His people and be seen upon them. And when
that hour arrives nothing can stop Gods judgments from coming into the earth. And when His judgments are in the earth, the
inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. Arent
you glad!
The seven-sealed
book is not a record of past or future events in the outer world. It has nothing to do with wars between nations or
judgments poured out upon the nations of earth. A book of world events would not be the revelation of Jesus Christ! A book of human events would not be of such a
nature that no one in heaven nor on earth nor
under the earth would be able to open the book or even to look thereon.
Nor is it a book of last things in the destiny of the world, as
all futurists proclaim. The vision of John
shows that the seven-sealed book has its own contents.
The revelation we are given indicates that the seven-sealed book symbolizes
something that only Christ can handle. Therefore
it must be a book of spiritual reality!
The main purpose
of the vision in chapter five of the Revelation is to focus attention on the seven-sealed
book. In this book we have the beginning of
the revelation of Jesus Christ! It is the
revelation of Himself released through His mighty spiritual work of transformation in His
called and chosen elect. The breaking of the
seals is the solemn and judicial way in which the Lamb nature establishes His rule and
reign in those who have been purchased by His blood.
It is the processing of God whereby the life of the Lamb is uncovered and
unfolded within us. This is a book within a
book. Literally, in the book of Revelation,
the seven-sealed book is a symbolic book within the book John wrote of his visions. However, spiritually
this means that John was brought to the place where he could see the intention of God
written in the nature of a people.
There are seven
seals upon this book. The number seven
denotes that contained within this book is the totality of Gods character and the
complete revelation of His will and purpose. As
these seals are loosed in Gods people they begin to experience the fullness of all
that God is. There has never been an
expression of God at this level in the earth at any time except in the person of the Lord
Jesus Christ, for it pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell. But now there is a people, His body, the
completion of Him, that has been sealed unto the day of redemption, and when God has
loosed in them all the seals there will be brought forth in the earth a many-membered
expression of God at the same level of Gods
fullness. You will know Him no longer by
measure, you will see Him no more through a glass darkly, or as a reality beyond or
outside of yourself. He will no longer be a
mental image, a good feeling, an ideal, a philosophy or doctrine. You will know Him even as you are known by Him and
will see Him face to face.
A remarkable
prophecy was given by a saint of God in the year 1619.
A portion of this prophecy confirms the truth I now share. It says, There shall be a full redemption of
Christ. This is a hidden mystery not to be
revealed or understood without the revelation of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is at hand to reveal the same unto
all holy seekers and loving inquirers. The
completion of such redemption is withheld and abstracted by the seals of Revelation.
Wherefore; as the Spirit of God shall open seal after seal,
so shall this redemption come to be revealed, both particularly and universally. In the gradual
opening of the mystery of redemption in Christ, does consist the unsearchable wisdom
of God, which will continually reveal new and fresh things to the worthy seeker. The unsealing
of the living testimony (perfected remnant of
believers, the manchild, the literal sons of
Gods people), along with the ark of God
(Jesus Christ), must begin the promulgation of the everlasting Gospel of the
Kingdom. What a word!