The Mystery of the Mark of God
Giant Mysteries Series
May 18, 2014 Chester FBC, Chester, IL Dr. Mike Fogerson, Speaker
A One of the most familiar of images of Revelation is that in which the 144,000 Jews are sealed- - - 12,000 from each tribe.
1 Revelation 7:2-3 (NASB) 2 And I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, 3 saying, "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads."
a We find out more about these “sealed bond-servants” in Rev.14
Revelation 14:1-4 (NASB) 1 Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps. 3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth. 4 These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb.
b These elect-representatives of Israel’s Twelve Tribes are “sealed.”
aa It’s generally believed they are sealed/set aside for a certain/specific task that God has for them during the Tribulation.
bb Some believe they are God’s evangelists for a period in during the seven year Tribulation. (The Church is gone/raptured so someone has to be sent forth with the Gospel.)
2 These 144,000 are seen as redeemed, justified before God.
a Rev. 14.4, tells us they were virgins (symbol of purity & dedication).
aa They sing a special victory song that was specific to their work. Anthem!
bb In other words, they are chosen, sealed for a unique reason.
b One of their jobs will be to be a force against the Antichrist during the Tribulation.
B Why does the Bible go to such trouble to describe for us the sealing process when the meaning seems so obscure?
1 As always, the Bible has an answer to this question.
2 Pray
I The Seal of Identification
A In the ancient world, seals were used to indicate ownership, authenticity, and protection.
1 The seal, usually from a signet ring/cylindrical seal, was placed upon soft wax or clay proving that someone has spoken for them. (The seal made the document official.) (Image)
a Potter’s/Sculptures would put their “seal” on their jars or sculptures to prove that the item was their work. (Image)
b An unbroken seal on a scroll/letter showed that it had been violated. (Image)
aa When Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den, it was sealed of by order of the king to ward off anyone who would try to save him.
bb Messiah’s tomb was sealed to insure the disciples wouldn’t steal Jesus’ body. . . to break the seal was to challenge the power of Caesar. (Image)
2 According to Scripture, Christians are “sealed” by the Holy Ghost.
a Ephesians 1:13-14 (HCSB) 13 When you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed in Him, you were also sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. 14 He is the down payment of our inheritance, for the redemption of the possession, to the praise of His glory.
aa Sealing indicates ownership and protection; it identifies the believer as belonging to the Lord.
bb When Jesus feed the 5,000, He spoke of His own spiritual sealing:
John 6:27 (HCSB) 27 Don’t work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal of approval on Him. -EMPHASIS ADDED
cc Jesus is linking His sealing with eternal provision; The Believer is assured that the Lord will always provide for them with things from heaven.
b Paul spoke of salvation & the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as a “sealing”,
2 Corinthians 1:22 (HCSB) 22 He has also sealed us and given us the Spirit as a down payment in our hearts.
aa Remember the “seal” over Christ’s grave (IMAGE.)
bb In Romans 6, Paul describes the Believer as being baptized into the death of Christ, assuring them that we will be raised from dead into a new life . . . the giving of the Holy Spirit is a kind of sealing.
B As Christians we are all “marked” men & women!
1 What God started in us here on earth, will be completed in our lives and also at the end of our lives.
a Ephesians 1:13-14 (NASB) 13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory.
b The sealing we have in the Holy Spirit is a legal action.
2 We have been notarized by the Holy Spirit.
II Is the Seal a Mark?
A By faith, we accept the fact that God some sort of identifying mark of some sort on us.
1 It isn’t visible to the naked eye, but undoubtedly God can see it.
a For the Believer, “Believing is seeing” because the Bible said so.
b I do believe that if the Lord opened our eyes to see the “mark” we could actually see it.
2 There is a story in Ezekiel that sheds some light on this idea of what the “mark” looks like.
a In Ezekiel 9, we find God judging Jerusalem by sending seven (7) angels to the City of God.
aa Six of these angels carry some kind of weapon, one of them has a inkhorn. (Scribe).
bb God tells the pen-weilding angel to “mark” all those who would be spared destruction/judgement.
cc Ezekiel 9:4 (NASB) 4 The LORD said to him, "Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst." -EMPHASIS ADDED
dd (Show the NASB Greek-Hebrew Dictionary for the verse & word 8420)
b The other angels went through the city slaying everyone who didn’t have the mark.
aa Ezekiel 9:5-6 (NASB) 5 But to the others He said in my hearing, "Go through the city after him and strike; do not let your eye have pity and do not spare. 6 "Utterly slay old men, young men, maidens, little children, and women, but do not touch any man on whom is the mark; and you shall start from My sanctuary." So they started with the elders who were before the temple. -EMPHASES ADDED
bb All who would repent their sins are set aside by a visible mark on their foreheads.
B In the original language of Ezekiel (Hebrew) we are actually able to see much more, namely, the mark itself!
1 In Hebrew, “the mark” is ha-tahv, literally translated “the tahv”
a Last letter of the Hebrew alphabet is the “tahv” (Image of Tahv)
b Big deal, right? (WRONG!)
2 When we unlock the significance of the “Tahv” we’ll understand the meaning & symbolism of the mark/seal that places on the elect.
III The Letter Tahv
A Amongst Hebrew scholars, Tahv is regarded as a symbol of “final truth and perfection.”
1 It makes sense that the mark with which the Lord seals His saints is “tahv”, the sign of truth & perfection, since He is the highest representation of these qualities.
a He promises to bring the redeemed to the same state in His Kingdom.
b And, since the Hebrews see their alphabet as the stages of growth by the righteous, tahv is the metaphor for total fulfillment of the Lord’s finished work in the life of a person.
c The last thing an artist puts on his work is his/her signature.
2 On the cross, Jesus cried out “It is finished!”
John 19:30 (NASB) 30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
a The transaction, redemption has been made on the cross.
aa Every prophecy of the OT looks forward to the cross and every truth in the NT depends upon the work being completed on Calvary.
bb The cross is the apex of human history. (No greater, significant event)
cc Colossians 1:19-20 (NASB) 19 For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
b The cross is the symbol of reconciliation for humankind, and a darkened universe by the iniquity of Satan.
aa What is interesting is that the ancient tahv didn’t look like what they used in the first century.
bb In the ancient days, the tahv was shaped like a cross!
cc Sometimes it appeared as an [x] and sometimes as a [+], or even a classic cross.
dd In my opinion, the repentant Jews in Jerusalem in Ezekiel’s narrative were marked with cross on their foreheads; This was a prophecy of Christ’s future work.
B Long before the cross occurred, both God & Satan realized the importance of the cross.
1 In Gen. 4, God placed a curse on Cain for killing his brother Abel.
a The curse was manifested in a “mark” that God placed upon the forehead of Cain.
aa Genesis 4:13-16 (KJV) 13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 16 And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
bb (Show the NASB Greek-Hebrew Dictionary for the verse & word 226)
cc Same word as Ezekiel 9.4, right? WRONG! (Show both words [226 & 8420] simultaneously from the NASB Greek-Hebrew Dictionary)
b They look similar, function is the same . . . but Can was far from righteous. How could this be a sign of truth & perfection?
aa The “mark” placed on Cain was aleph-vav-tahv; Ezekiel’s mark was tahv-vav. It’s reversed!!!
bb Since we know that the tahv is a cross, we can speculate about the nature of Cain’s mark is that of a broken or twisted cross; a perversion of Christ’s cross.
2 According to the Encyclopedia Americana, the hooked cross (the swastika) is the earliest known symbol on the planet.
a It is a symbol of the sun in the nature-religions of the Aryan races from Scandinavia to Persia and India.
aa Similar symbols have been found in monumental remains of Mexicans and Peruvians, and prehistoric burial grounds in the United States.
bb It is associated with worship of the Aryan sun-gods (Apollo, Odin) ans is believed to represent the sun.
cc In recent history, it was adopted by Adolph Hitler’s Germany as a national symbol of Nazism.
b The twisted/broken cross is a symbol of the occult, black magic (both of which were deeply embedded in Hitler’s Third Reich).
3 The broken cross is very different than the universal Judeo-Christian symbol of redemption, the Cross.
a The cross represents hope for a lost humanity and God’s grace.
b The bent cross is the opposite.
aa It stands for the power of man who, through unholy alliance with the forces of darkness, attempts to build his own world of pride & power.
bb It’s this thinking, mind set that the Antichrist will one day claim the power to enslave the peoples of all nations.
Conclusion:
A The mark on the 144,000, is probably the cross (tahv); the other mark is a twisted/hooked cross of an ancient/corrupt culture.
1 Paul writes of the end day corruption in Eph. 4.17-19.
a Ephesians 4:17-19 (NASB) 17 So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; 19 and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.
b A few verses later, he assures the faithful that they are sealed by the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 4:30 (NASB) 30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
2 I don’t know how, but some how God sees the mark on every believer, the mark of the cross.
a Once placed upon you, it can never be removed.
b In the ancient practice of sealing, something is fastened with a seal to prevent it from being removed from one position to another.
aa It is the earliest method of assuring your property is marked with your name (ownership).
bb We have been marked, impressed with signet of the Lord, Himself. . . we belong to Him.
B God’s Holy Spirit is the one doing the sealing, He pressed upon us!
1 We are guaranteed both redemption & protection.
a The Holy Spirit can be grieved, vexed, rejected . . . but He can not be broken.
b He is the guarantee that we will come safely to the ordained time of our redemption and the promise that we will into the Kingdom of Heaven.
2 IL
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