Introduction: Last week we learned something glorious: Jesus opened
the scroll that no one else (including our Father in Heaven) was
“worthy” to open. The idea that God the Father was not worthy seemed
ridiculous, until we thought about it a little more. Jesus saved us
eternally by His perfect life, His sacrifice on the cross, and His
resurrection on our behalf. Jesus opened the future for us! This week
we learn more about this scroll and our future. Let’s plunge into our
study of Revelation and learn more!
- Opening the Scroll
- Let’s revisit Revelation 5:3 by reading it. What does it
mean to “look inside” the scroll? (Our study this week
involves looking inside the scroll. We study the future
made possible by what Jesus has done for us.) - What does this say about the understanding of heaven
with regard to the outcome of Jesus’ mission here on
earth? (Taken literally, it means that heaven did not
know whether Jesus would succeed. The future was
sealed and only Jesus could open the future to
success.) - Does that mean that God the Father did not know
whether Jesus would succeed? (The answer to
this is above my level of understanding. This
raises questions about the omniscience of God
(God’s knowledge of everything) as well as the
nature of the Trinity.) - Do you think Satan poured everything he had
into defeating Jesus at the cross? (No doubt
Satan’s knowledge of the situation is better
than our knowledge. If he did his best to make
Jesus sin, that tells us that he thought he
could prevail.) - Read Revelation 5:5. The elder tells us that Jesus’
triumph opens the scroll and the seven seals. Why is that
true? (By Jesus’ victory, our future is open. God’s
version of the future, rather than Satan’s version, will
now play out. Let’s turn to that next.) - First Seal
- Read Revelation 6:1-2 and compare Revelation 6:15-16. What
does this brief comparison of the first and sixth seals
reveals about the nature of the seals? (These are
important landmarks in history beginning with Jesus’
victory at the cross and His Second Coming.) - Compare this with our study of the seven churches?
(The seven churches revealed a history of the
Christian church. The seals are a parallel: they
reflect the conflict between good and evil.) - Look at Revelation 6:1-2 again. Who is this rider? (Read
Revelation 19:11-13. This is a triumphant Jesus.) - Which triumph is this? (Jesus’ triumph at the cross.
The later picture of Jesus on a white horse in
Revelation 19 is a picture of His Second Coming.) - What “conquest” is Jesus undertaking in Revelation
6:2? (The conversion of humans to His side. Jesus won
the war against sin and Satan, the battle continues
for the hearts and minds of humans.) - Read Acts 2:1-3 and Acts 2:40-41. What made this great day
possible? (The Holy Spirit.) - What do you think is the “bow” of Revelation 6:1?
(Comparing Acts 2 makes me think it is the Holy
Spirit. A bow, as in “bow and arrow,” can project
power through the air. That is part of the power of
the Holy Spirit.) - Second Seal
- Read Revelation 6:3-4. Do you think “red” is symbolically
a good or bad color? (Read Revelation 12:3-4. The red
dragon represents Satan, so I will conclude this is not a
good color.) - Read Acts 12:1-3. What do we find recorded after the
disciples begin their gospel work? (Persecution comes.
John’s brother, James, was one of its early victims. Other
Christians lost their lives because of their gospel work.) - Third Seal
- Read Revelation 6:5-6. What does the color black tell us?
(Read Jeremiah 4:27-28. Darkness is a picture of mourning.
Even today we wear black at funerals.) - Look again at Revelation 6:6. What do these prices
reflect? (Commentators indicate that these are very high
prices, thus suggesting a famine.) - Read Acts 11:28. What do we find here? (Famine over the
entire Roman empire!) - Read Matthew 24:1-7. How does famine play into the time of
the end? (I have read accounts of how terrible it was in
Jerusalem when Rome laid siege to it and ultimately
destroyed it. People were starving. In addition, famine is
one of the signs of the end of the world.) - Fourth Seal
- Read Revelation 6:7-8. What does the color “pale” tell us?
(This is explicit, it signifies death.) - What happens when this seal is opened? (The
population of a fourth of the world is in trouble!) - On commentator I read suggested that this is a fourth
of the Roman world, not the population today. What
do you think about that idea? (Read Revelation 9:14-16. The information that the number of cavalry
soldiers is two hundred million does not sound like a
reference to a portion of the population of the earth
during the time of the Roman empire.) - Look specifically at Revelation 6:8. Who is doing the
killing? (Riders named Death and Hades.) - Read Revelation 20:14. Is Jesus behind these
killings? (Jesus is the enemy of Death and Hades
because He destroys them. But, it appears that Jesus
allows this: “they were given power over….”) - When we looked at the Revelation 9 reference, it said
a third of the population died. Does Revelation 6:8
say that a fourth of the population dies? (No. It
says that Death and Hades were given power over a
portion of the world.) - Knowing what you do about the nature of Jesus,
do you think that He authorized this? (Just
like Adam and Eve chose to turn the earth over
to Satan, so I believe that the people in this
section of the earth turned it over to Death
and Hades. Jesus merely permitted their
choice.) - Fifth Seal
- Read Revelation 6:9-11. Are these martyrs in heaven? Or,
is this symbolic? - Some forcefully argue that this text says nothing
about the state of the dead. What do you think? (Read
Luke 9:30-32. We won’t get sidetracked into a long
study on this, but the Bible reveals that some humans
have been taken directly to heaven (Elijah) and some
raised to life and taken to heaven (Moses). Because
Moses and Elijah are heroes of faith, I don’t think
this is common, but this shows what God has done in
the past. These martyrs could be in heaven.) - Re-read Revelation 6:11. What does this tell us is going
on during this seal? (Christians are being killed for
their faith as an ongoing matter!) - Sixth Seal
- Read Revelation 6:12-14. Is this a regional event? Would a
reasonable reading of this be fulfilled by something that
happened in a small region of the United States? (The
reference to a “great earthquake” could be a regional
event. On the other hand, “every mountain and island was
removed” is a world-wide event.) - Is the earthquake related to the islands moving? (If
it is, then none of this is a regional event.) - What does that mean that the “sky receded like a
scroll?” (Physics shows that we can see the past and
the future in the in the stars. Just like we can hear
and see a train when it is coming towards us, so we
can see events in the sky coming towards us. This is
a world-wide event.) - Read Revelation 6:15-17. How do these kings have the time
to hide? If the Second Coming of Jesus is instant and
world-wide, are the wicked not stopped right where they
stand? (This further supports the conclusion that the
entire world will see things happening in the galaxy that
will tell them the universe is collapsing.) - Friend, are you ready? Do you want to hide or cheer when
Jesus comes again? Why not confess that Jesus is Lord and
accept His white robe of righteousness – His life, death
and resurrection on your behalf? Why not do that right
now? - Next week: The Sealed People of God.
