Chapter 6
In Chapter Six, we begin to see the opening of the seven seals of the book. Once again, this book could only be unsealed by one person. The Lamb. Salvation could only be given to us by one person. THE LAMB. This book is Salvations plan. Knowing that, every seal of the book had to be opened. Were not waiting for all or even some of them to be opened. When the Lamb prevailed, he opened them. When we join the vision here, its not being opened for the first time, but it was opened already. In Psalms 66:5, David says, Come and see the works of God. In John 1:46, when Nathanael asked if anything good could come from Nazareth, Philip answered, Come and see. Why could David say to come see the works of God? Because he had seen them. How could Philip say come and see the good in the man from Nazareth? He had seen. How could the first beast say to John, come and see what is in the first seal of the book? He had seen! When a sinner comes into the presence of the Church, how can we invite them to come and see the salvation of the Lord? We’ve seen Salvation’s plan.
Knowing this book is Salvation, we see that John is looking back at past events, not looking ahead to the future. That is vital in understanding each of these seals. Many believe he is looking ahead to after the Church has been raptured into heaven, and the 7 year tribulation is beginning. I know that without the book being opened, the Church wouldn’t be in heaven, because there wouldn’t be a Church.
When John see’s the first seal open, he saw a rider on a white horse. White represents pure, undefiled and holy. Isaiah 1:18 says, Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as WHITE as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. A lot of people say that the rider of this pure, undefiled and holy horse, is the antichrist. That is unbiblical and a very dangerous thing to say. People are waiting for the antichrist to come. John knew about the antichrists. He wrote in 1 John 2:18, that while many are awaiting the coming of the antichrist, that there were many here already. Who are these antichrists? John said in 1 John 2:22, He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. The rider of this horse is not the antichrist, and no matter how hard a person tries, I challenge them to show me a BIBLICAL verse that says the antichrist is riding this white horse. It won’t happen. I can give you a book, chapter and verse of who this rider is. Look at Revelation 19. There are 2 people who ride on a white horse in the whole bible. Verse 11 tells of the first. And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. Is this the antichrist? If the rider in chapter 6 is, then this rider is as well. Their mission is the same. To conquer and bring a sword.
We know that Christ is the one opening this book. Therefore he is not the rider, but he is the one giving power to the rider. When he opened the first seal, he gave power to the rider to go forth conquering and to conquer. If the rider is not Christ, who is the rider? Go back to Revelation 19. Look at verse 14. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. Who is his army? His glorious Church! What were they doing? They were conquering! What were they conquering with? The Word of God.
The rider on this horse, was the Church of the living God. When Salvation came, they were told to take it to all nations. Matthew 28:18-20 says, And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. Matthew 24:14 says, And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations. On the day of Pentecost, there were devout Jews, and men from EVERY nation gathering at Jerusalem. The Gospel of the Kingdom of God began going out that day, and it was delivered by the rider on the white horse. The Church. The plan of Salvation cannot be revealed to a person without the preaching of the Gospel. Romans 10:14-15 says, How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? That it why the first seal is a picture of the Gospel coming to someone and revealing God’s great plan.
When the Gospel comes to our lives, it makes manifest our sin. When the women in Luke 15:8, lost a coin, the first thing that she did was light a candle. Then she began to sweep and clean the floor, in order to find the coin. Without the light shining on the floor, she couldn’t have seen the dirt. When we see the dirt or sin in our lives, peace leaves. The second seal follows the first. The gospel takes peace from our lives. Psalms 85:10 says, Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. For them to meet together, they had to be separated at one time. I believe they were present together in the Garden of Eden. I believe it was also there, that they were separated. What separated them? Sin. As a 7 year old boy on November 1, 1988, righteousness and peace dwelled together. When the Gospel of God begin to shine it’s light into my life on November 2, and Holy Ghost conviction set up in my heart, the peace that I once had was gone. What did the rider on the red horse do? Power was given to him, (by the Lamb) to take away peace. What was the weapon that he used? A sword. Hebrews 4:12 says, For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. It’s not the antichrist that has the power to take peace from the earth. The power was in the sword, that God gave to the Church.
When the Gospel comes, it penetrates our hearts, and removes peace. After that, the third seal is opened to us, and we stand before the judgment of the Almighty God. We are weighed in the balances in the rider’s hand. What is the balance? The same thing the bow and the sword are. The Gospel word of God. Standing in judgment makes us accountable before God. People say they will give an account one day in the future. The bible says when the Gospel comes and busts up our stony heart, and shows us that we have sinned, we stand before the throne right then! 1 Peter 3:17 says, For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? Job 31:4-6 says, Doth not he see my ways, and count all my steps? If I have walked with vanity, or if my foot hath hasted to deceit; Let me be weighed in an even balance that God may know mine integrity. We are weighed in an even balance today.
I can remember when the Gospel came to me. When I stood before God, being weighed in the balance, there was someone else present as well. The bible says in Zechariah 3:1, that Joshua the High Priest was standing before the angel of the Lord. He wasn’t alone either. It says that Satan was there standing at his right hand to resist him. The devil will weigh us in his balance. Can you remember hearing the Devil say, “your okay, put it off.” Solomon said in Proverbs 11:1, A false balance is abomination to the LORD. It is important for us to know, that there is a false balance, and its of the Devil. It is at this time, there is a great battle between good and evil that takes place. This was the greatest battle I have ever known. The Lamb and his army from Revelation 19, came up against the army of Satan in Revelation 19. Their motive was, they were battling for my soul. God promised in Hosea 1:10-11, that it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God. He said, for great shall be the day of Jezreel. If you research the day of Jezreel, it means the same as Megiddo. When the Gospel touched my heart, I was told I was no longer one of God’s. The hand of safety I was under, was removed, and Salvation was offered. But thank God that in the same place I was told I was no longer one of his, I was told that I was a Son of the Living God!
After standing before God in judgment, there is only one thing left. The sentence. No matter how good you think you are, you will stand guilty of sin. Romans 5:12 says, Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. That makes it clear that all of us have sinned, and sin has only one wage. Romans 6:23 says, For the wages of sin is death. When the fourth seal is opened, the rider on the horse brings death. All would agree that natural death is unavoidable. This body will eventually succumb, and our life on earth will cease. When the Gospel reveals our sin, and we stand before God and guilty, there is no avoiding spiritual death. James 1:15 says, Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. In John 3, we read of a conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus. Jesus told Nicodemus that the Kingdom of God was unobtainable, without being born again. He also explained that he was speaking of being reborn spiritually. How can someone be reborn, after they are alive? They have to die spiritually. Without spiritual death, there can’t be spiritual life. John 12:24 says, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. We have to be buried with Christ in his death, before we can live and be resurrected with him. (Romans 6:3-11).
I am thankful that when Christ died and rose again, that salvation flowed forward to you and I. Zechariah 13:1 says, In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. I believe he looked ahead to you and I, and his precious blood is still running ahead to man today. The fifth seal makes us aware that Salvation also went backward toward the law. In Zechariah 14:8 he writes, And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea. In the Old Testament, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob all died looking ahead for the redemption of their souls. They died in faith, but received not the promise. (Hebrews 11:39). I believe these souls under the altar, were those Old Testament saints of God. How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? Many had forgotten the promises that God had promised to his people, but thank God Christ didn’t. He told Israel in Isaiah 49:15-16, Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands. Christ’s blood was not only for the New Testament Church, but the Old Testament saints needed the same blood. What a beautiful prophetic picture of this is in the book of Leviticus.
From the very beginning, cleansing from unrighteousness had to come by the blood. We know the writer of Hebrews said, without shedding of blood is no remission. Before that, the law tells us in Leviticus 17:11, for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. God began to let Israel know that before they could approach the throne of God, there had to be some blood to cleanse them. Leviticus 4, begins to tell us of the sin offering. They had to bring a lamb before God, and offer its blood for atonement. The priest was to dip his finger down in the lamb’s blood, and sprinkle it seven times before the Lord. He then took some of the blood and placed it on the horns of the altar. A great picture of what Christ would do for the New Testament Church. But that’s not all he did with the blood. The bible says in Leviticus 4:18, that he shall pour out all the blood at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. Can you see as he poured out all the blood at the bottom of the altar, that it began to flow under the altar of God and saturate everything under it? In Leviticus, to the best of my knowledge, nothing was under the altar, but in Revelation 6, there were some awaiting the promises of God! He didn’t forget them. The bible says in Matthew 27:51-53, that when Christ arose, the saints which slept got up with him!
What a glorious picture the fifth seal reveals. Unfortunately, its not the end of the seals. The bible tells a different story upon the opening of the sixth seal. Salvation brought life and victory to those in the Old Testament who died believing and following after the Law’s of God. But not everyone obeyed God. Salvation and the blood of Christ covered the righteous, but at the same time condemned the unbelieving. Daniel 12:2 says, And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Not everyone one is going to Heaven. I know that there is a false doctrine today, that you can get in by good works or deeds, or even by believing in “a god,” but according to the Word of THE God, only through the blood of Jesus. That blood redeemed the Old Testament saints, and condemned the Old Testament sinner! The bible says they ran to and fro to find shelter from the wrath of God, but there was none for them, and when the blood condemns lost folks today, it is the same. There is no hiding from the wrath of God.
