Why Future Events?-Part 7

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WHY FUTURE EVENTS? PART 7

The previous article began to focus attention on the sealed scroll of Revelation 5 and its relationship to the issue of how God will crush Satan and remove him and his evil king­dom rule from the present earth in the future. On the basis of the setting and background of the sealed scroll, the following conclusion was drawn concerning its identification: The sealed scroll of Revelation 5 is the deed of purchase for mankind’s tenant possession inheritance of the earth that was forfeited when mankind fell away from God. Just as scroll deeds of purchase were made when Jeremiah, as a kinsman-redeemer, paid the redemp­tion price to redeem his cousin’s tenant possession of land (Jeremiah 32:6-12), so a scroll deed of purchase was made when Christ, as the Kinsman-Redeemer, paid the redemption price to redeem mankind’s tenant possession of the earth by shedding His blood on the cross. The present article will focus attention on other significant things related to the sealed scroll.

The Need For The Sealed Scroll Deed

One of Jeremiah’s scroll deeds was sealed to prevent anyone from changing its contents (Jeremiah 32:10-11). That gave the scroll the nature of irrefutable legal evidence that Jeremiah was the kinsman-redeemer who had the right to take tenant possession of the land because he had redeemed it through the payment of the redemption price. Gottfried Fitzer wrote that “The seal served as a legal protection and guarantee in many ways, especially in relation to prop­erty”.^[1] Parallel to this, the scroll deed of Revelation 5 is sealed with seven seals. That gave that deed the nature of irrefutable evidence that Christ is the Kinsman-Redeemer who has the right to take tenant possession of the earth because He has redeemed it through the payment of the redemption price, the shedding of His blood on the cross.

Jeremiah’s scroll deeds were placed in a secure place where they could be preserved for a long period of time, since he did not take actual possession of the land immediately after paying the redemption price (Jeremiah 32:13-15). Circumstances removed him far from the land for many years. In like manner, Christ’s scroll deed was placed in a secure place (God’s right hand in Heaven—Revelation 5:1, 7) for a long period of time, because He did not take actual possession of the earth immediately after paying the redemption price at the cross. He removed to a location far from the earth (Heaven—Acts 1:9-11) for many years.

Just as squatters controlled the land of Israel (including the land Jeremiah had pur­chased) for many years while the Jews and Jeremiah were removed from it, so squatters (Satan and the human members of his kingdom) are controlling the world system during the years Christ is removed from the earth.

The Two Responsibilities Of The Kinsman-Redeemer

Land redemption in Israel involved two responsibilities for a kinsman-redeemer. First, he had to pay the redemption price for the forfeited land and thereby obtain the right of tenant possession. Second, he then had to take actual possession of the land and exercise administrative rule over it. Sometimes this required him to evict squatters who had begun to exercise tenant possession of the land illegally.

In like manner, the redemption of the earth involves the same two responsibilities for Christ, mankind’s Kinsman-Redeemer. First, He had to pay the redemption price for the earth and thereby obtain the right of tenant possession. Second, now that Christ has obtained that right, He must take actual possession of the earth and exercise administrative rule over it. This will require Him to evict the squatters, Satan and his forces, who have exercised illegal tenant possession of the earth since mankind’s fall.

The Significance Of Christ’s Action With The Sealed Scroll

If illegal squatters challenged an Israelite kinsman-redeemer’s right to take tenant possession of land, the redeemer had to produce legal evidence that he had paid the redemption price and, therefore, had the right to take possession. The sealed scroll deed of purchase was that legal evidence.

Christ will return to the earth to take tenant possession at His Second Coming after the end of the 70th week of Daniel (the seven year Tribulation Period). By the end of that period Satan and his forces will have drawn the rulers and armies of the world into the land of Israel to fight against Christ (Psalm 2:1-3; Zechariah 12-14; Revelation 16:12-16; 19:11- 21). This will be Satan’s ultimate challenge to Christ’s right to take tenant possession of the earth and to rule it.

This challenge will require Christ to provide irrefutable legal evidence of His right of tenant possession before he evicts the squatters and takes actual possession. His sealed scroll deed will be that evidence. At the beginning of the seven year Tribulation Period Christ will take that deed from God’s hand and begin to break its seven seals one-by-one. He thereby will instigate three series of judgments that will devastate significant areas of Satan’s earthly domain (Revelation 6-18) and demonstrate that He has the power neces­sary to evict Satan and his forces. As a result of having broken all seven seals during the Tribulation Period, Christ will have the scroll deed open by the time of His Second Coming. At that time He will read the contents of the scroll publicly as the conclusive legal evidence that He is the true Kinsman-Redeemer of mankind’s forfeited inheritance and, therefore, has the right to evict Satan and his forces and to take tenant possession of the earth (Psalm 2:7-9). After presenting this evidence Christ will fully exercise that right by ridding the earth of Satan and his forces and taking the rule of the earth as the last Adam (Revela­tion 19:19-20:6).

Now that we have examined the significance of the sealed scroll of Revelation 5, the next article will begin to look specifically at how God will crush Satan and rid the earth of him and his evil kingdom rule.

To pursue the subject of how God works through time to accomplish His purpose for history, order my book: What On Earth Is God Doing? from Loizeaux Brothers Publishers, P.O. Box 277, Neptune, NJ 07754-0277; Telephone: 800-526-2796.

NOTES

1. ↑ “sphragis,” Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Vol. VII, p. 940.

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