The great moment has arrived! The moment that creation and suffering humanity have been waiting for centuries, is about to happen. The Lamb comes and takes the scroll from the right hand of the Father on the throne: the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God has given Him to show His servants about what is soon to take place.1 The unveiling of His glory is about to begin. Only now may the Lamb be seen by John, when it is clear that no one is worthy—no one in Heaven, on earth and under the earth—to take the scroll. John now sees Him standing and then He comes forward. “A bruised reed shall He not break, and smoking flax shall He not quench, till He send forth judgment unto victory.” 2 He possesses the sevenfold Spirit. The Spirit providing Him with all He needs. Jesus is the perfect sacrifice, He is the cornerstone of the dwelling of God in the Spirit,3 and the root and the lineage of David. He is going to bring history to its end. And that end can be nothing else than the goal God has set – the Kingdom of God. People have been longing and praying for it for centuries—in Israel and in the church of Jesus Christ. Six thousand years of world history has been a long road of tears and waiting. Now it is all going to begin: the world is going to be brought into submission to Him. Into the possession of the rightful Owner.
‘Babylon’ will be judged, the ‘anti-Christ’ destroyed, the ‘dragon’ bound, ‘death’ overthrown, the curse averted, the earth renewed and the rule of eternal blessing and peace will cover the whole earth so that it will be an eternal Paradise from God. The Redeemer has paid the price and taken the rightful ownership from God’s right hand. Heaven holds its breath. A greater and more impressive event is nowhere to be found in the Book of Revelation. The Lamb comes and accepts the scroll. The whole Universe is a witness to the fact and John is allowed to see it in the Spirit, and to communicate it to us. For centuries, saints have prayed the Lord’s Prayer beginning with “Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come!” and ending with full conviction, “For Thine is the Kingdom, for ever, Amen.”4 We have now arrived at the point when this prayer of the ages is about to be answered. John will later be allowed to see what all this will entail and how it will all develop, but first there is the overwhelming reaction in Heaven. God is on the throne. He is giving Glory and judgment to the Lamb, because He was slain and allowed Himself to be slain. With His wounds visible, He strides up to the One Who is sitting on the throne and takes over the scroll in His hand. The Father has given everything into His hands,5 including judgment.
• He had already been given all power/authority in Heaven and earth after His ascension. Here this power becomes unveiled ‘publicly’ and it enters into operation.
• The Kingdom was already manifested partially: firstly, when the Lord Jesus was on earth and exercised His power over sin, sickness, the devil and death;6 secondly, His followers also healed the sick and delivered the captive, showing the same signs of the Kingdom in this world in the book of Acts: spots of light in the darkness;7 thirdly, in the Church worldwide and the ongoing counteractivity against decay by being salt and light in society;8 fourthly, the proclamation of the Gospel of the Kingdom worldwide, blessed by the Holy Spirit, so that sinners can come to new, eternal life;9 and finally, when the scroll is unrolled, everyone will bow before Him and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father.10
• Isaiah 11:1-3 says it beautifully and sums up the sevenfold ‘attributes’ of the sevenfold Spirit: one is the Spirit of the Lord, two, the Spirit of wisdom, three, the Spirit of understanding, four, the Spirit of counsel, five, the Spirit of might, six, the Spirit of knowledge and seven, the Spirit of the fear of the Lord.
Bible References:
1. Revelation 1:1 2.Matthew 12:20 KJV 3.Ephesians 2:22 4.Matthew 6:9–13 5.John 13:3, 16:15; Matthew 11:27 6.John 5:22 7.Matthew 12:28; Luke 17:21 8.John 14:12; Acts 3:1-5; Acts 5:12-16; Acts 8:4-8, 9-13; 14:3; 19:11-12; 20:7-12; 28:3–9 9. John 5:24 10.Philippians 2:9–11
