Hearing the Voice of God
As we can see in many places in the bible, Apostle John had ability to understand the voice of God. Ordinary people received the voice of God as undiscernible sound of thunders. However, John had the ear for the voice of God and could understand the meaning of the voice of God.
John 12:28 Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
Unlike the people around him who understood the voice of God as thunders, John clearly heard what God had said and wrote, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again”.
The Bible Sealed Up
In the Book of Revelation, John heard the voice of God again and tried to write down what he heard. But this time God commanded him to seal up what he heard.
Revelation 10:3 When he (God) shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke. 4 And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down.”
Even though John heard what God had said and was about to write them, God told him not to write them down. And because of this, the bible teaches that the words of God will have been sealed up.
Revelation 5:1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside.
When the book of God or the bible will be sealed up in the last days, there would be no one who can open the seven seals of the bible, which means there would be nobody who can understand the words of God in the bible. (Isaiah 29:11)
Unsealing the Bible
Because of this many people today argue that it is presumptuous to try to know what God has sealed up. And it is natural for us not to know the meaning of the Revelation or the bible in general. This humble attitude seems to be proper and suitable to the people of God who are supposed to have limited ability unlike God. For this reason, people do not try to understand the meaning of the bible with the excuse that you can cover up your ignorance through the faith in God.
If you have faith in God, any ambiguity or gap in the bible does not matter to you. Since you have faith in God, you will be saved whether or not you know the meaning of the words of God in the bible. Is this true?
2000 years ago in the time of Jesus the Jews had the same attitude. They believed that they had faith in God. And through their faith in God they could be saved whether or not they knew the meaning of the words of the bible. But they could not. They did not know who Jesus was. Even through Jesus was their God they had believed since the time of Abraham, they did not receive him since He came as man in the flesh just like them since they did not know the words of prophecy in the bible.
Through the story of the Jews, there is one thing that we should know. That is, It is essential to have the knowledge of the words of God in the bible to receive salvation and to have firm faith. Knowledge of the bible gives us the faith in God. Without knowing the bible, we cannot know God and we cannot receive salvation.
The Root of David
When God commanded John to seal up what the seven thunders had said, did God intend to seal up the message forever? No, definitely not. When we write a letter, we usually seal up the message in an envelope. However, that does not mean that the message would be sealed up forever. When the appointed recipient receives the letter, he can open the seal and read the message in it.
The same is the true to the sealed-up message of God. The message was sealed up until the appointed time of God. When the time comes, the appointed person will unseal the message of God in the seven thunders. The bible teaches the sealed-up message will be unsealed in the last day.
Revelation 10:7 But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God (or the sealed-up message of God) will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.
Then who would unseal what the seven thunders said? The bible says that the secret will be revealed when the appointed time comes. (Revelation 22:10) Then who is the recipient who can open the message?
Revelation 5:5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.
Second Coming Christ Opening the Seven Seals
The bible says that it is only the Root of David who can open the seven seals of the bible. And the Root of David is the Christ who was to come in the last days, that is, the Second Coming Christ.
Revelation 22:16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you[a] this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
Then what does this mean? It means that we have to know who the Second Coming Christ is. To know who the Second Coming Christ is, we have to know the meaning of the bible and we should have knowledge of the bible. We cannot simply ignore what we do not know in the bible. Whatever is written in the bible was given to us as message to know God and receive salvation. Therefore, we have the full knowledge of the bible.
Today what we have to do is to know who the Root of David is through the prophecies of the bible. I hope everybody to come to have salvation by have the knowledge of the word of God in the bible.
2 Timothy 3:14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
We have to make efforts to know the meaning in the Scriptures and should have wisdom for salvation. Through the wisdom we get by studying the words of God in the bible, we can have faith in God, not vice versa. The knowledge gives us firm faith, not the other way round. Therefore, we must make every effort to know the words of God in the bible. Then we can come to know who the Root of David is and receive salvation.