Revelation 5:1-6

August 11-12, 2018 • Pastor Netz Gómez
THE DIGNITY OF CHRIST TO GOVERN THE EARTH

“And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside
and on the back, sealed with seven seals. 2 Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming
with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?” 3 And
no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll,
or to look at it. 4 So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and
read the scroll, or to look at it. 5 But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep.
Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open
the scroll and to loose its seven seals.”
6 And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living
creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been
slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent
out into all the earth.”

I. INTRODUCTION
A. This chapter describes the destiny of Jesus as a man on earth. He is
completely God and fully man. By His obedience unto death, God exalted Him
to the highest place in heaven and on earth. His exaltation is now manifested
partly in the earth and in fullness during the Millennium.
Phil. 2:9-10 “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the
name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under
the earth.”

B. Daniel prophesied that the Messiah of Israel would receive the leadership of
the earth forever.
Dan. 7:13-14 “…And behold, One like the Son of Man [Jesus], Coming with
the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days [the Father], And they
brought Him near before Him. 14 Then to Him was given dominion and
glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve
Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed.”
C. David wrote about the promise of the Father to give the leadership of the
nations to Jesus.
Ps. 2:8 “Ask of Me [the Father], and I will give You [the Son] The nations for
Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession.”

**Pag. 2***

II. JESUS TAKES THE SCROLL OF THE FATHER’S HAND

A. John saw the scroll in the hand of the Father. In the midst of the
atmosphere of celestial adoration, John suddenly notices something: the
Father has the scroll written inside and on the back that is sealed with 7 seals.
The Father has it in His hand because He wants to give it to someone, for
which the strong angel asks: “Who is worthy to open the book and start the
plan of the end times?” But the harsh reality is that v.3 “no one in heaven or on
the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.”

B. “a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals” This scroll
is the title deed of the earth and the plan of action of Jesus to bring the great
harvest of all nations and to prepare the church as a mature Bride who partner
with Him to rule the earth (Rev. 19:7-20:6) and fill it with the glory of God
(Rev. 20-22).

C. open the scroll: By opening this book, Jesus (the Lamb) accepts the
responsibility to cleanse and govern the earth. When Jesus takes possession
of this scroll in heaven and opens its seals; on earth there will be a series of
events (judgments) in which He will confront evil and injustice and then
govern the earth. Opening the book implies setting in motion His battle plan
which is described in Rev. 6-19.

D. Lion of the tribe of Judah, [the Lamb] the Root of David: Jesus has the
fierceness and boldness of a lion (v.5) that does not back down and the
tenderness and humility of a lamb (v.6) to confront the most difficult powers
and the most complex social issues. There are no contradictions in these two
facets of His personality. Jesus is the promised Messiah.
Is. 11:1-2 “ There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a
Branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 [1] The Spirit of the Lord shall rest
upon Him, [2] The Spirit of wisdom and [3] understanding, [4] The Spirit of
counsel and [5] might, [6] The Spirit of knowledge and of [7] the fear of the
Lord.”

E. having seven horns and seven eyes: Jesus is described as a lamb with seven
horns and seven eyes, which means that He has all the power and authority;
and all the ability to have a clear insight or perspective of the times, people
and things..
5:6 “having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God
sent out into all the earth”

III. JESUS IS WORTHY
v.9-10 “And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll,
And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by
Your blood… 10 And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall
reign on the earth.”

A. The highest governmental council around the Throne of God consists of 4
living creatures (angelic) and 24 elders (humans). They fall in amazement

***Pag. 3***

before the worthy Man and boldly proclaim their agreement with the decree
of the Father to make Jesus the supreme leader of the whole earth forever.
They are bold about this but we are shy about agreeing with His plan because
it goes against human common sense. It is politically incorrect for Jesus to
open the seals to judge the wicked governments of the earth. Even some
members of the church may feel offended. Many people think that Jesus will
take us to heaven and everything will be easy but He will return to establish
His government here on earth and will end all acts of evil.

1. “each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the
prayers of the saints” All the saints around the earth will be involved in
this prayer movement. The cups will be full before this plan is activated in
the last three and a half years of this era. The prayer movement in the
generation the Lord returns is escalating to a whole new level. These
prayers are key to the fulfillment of God’s plan because He operates in
agreement with His people in prayer.
Luk. 18:7-8 “And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day
and night to Him…? 8 I tell you that He will avenge them speedily.
Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on
the earth?”

2. they sang a new song: These new songs that are released come from the
Throne and indicate the beginning of a new stage in God’s purpose. It
does not refer to a song that has not been recorded but speak of a new
season for the world. As we approach the return of the Lord, there will be
more and more expressions on earth of this song unleashed through the
prophetic singers.

3. who was slain: Before coming to earth, Jesus possessed all the glory in
heaven but He emptied Himself of it out of love and humbled Himself by
becoming an obedient servant and took our punishment so that we could
inherit salvation.
Is. 53:5 “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised
for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him…”

B. You are worthy: The fact that Jesus is worthy to be the supreme leader of the
earth has three applications:
1. Jesus deserves it: Because He is our redeemer and creator. He deserves
that role and showed it by making every decision for love and justice.
2. Jesus is capable: He can open the seals or administer the judgments of
God and rule the earth forever. He is capable of casting out the evil of the
earth and then reorganizing all human governments which is extremely
complicated. No other man has the wisdom, humility, and power to lead
all the resources of all nations in a way that sustains love and justice
forever. No one will do it as accurately as He neither too early nor too late;
neither too severe nor too soft.

***Pag. 4***

3. Jesus is worthy: Since Jesus is who He is, He is worthy of our
wholehearted love, of continually praising His beauty; of our confident
trust in His leadership and of our sacrificial obedience to His will. Seeing
the dignity of Jesus, we value all other things as a loss in our search to love
Him wholeheartedly.
Phil. 3:8 “…Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of
the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord…”

4. The devil seeks to stir self-pity in us when he tells us that we are not
receiving good deal from God and that it is not worth the trouble of
seeking God diligently. The devil tempts us to give up trying to seek God
and surrender to sin saying it is too difficult. There is nothing better than
giving ourselves totally to Him, the other options are pathetic.

C. The promise of the Father is to make Jesus preeminent in all things.
Col. 1:18 “And He is the head of the body, the church… that in all things He
may have the preeminence.”

D. The inheritance of Jesus includes having total authority over the seven
spheres of life: power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, glory and blessing.
There are many aspects that are involved in each sphere. These are seven
manifestations of His leadership and the response of the nations to Him
Ap. 5:12 “saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To
receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory
and blessing!”

IV. CONCLUSION
Meditating and living in the light of this passage allows us to begin to give
Jesus on earth the importance and glory that is given to Him in heaven. It is as if we
begin to familiarize ourselves a little with the celestial reality. We are so used to the
exaltation of everything human that it may sound exaggerated or out of place but He
is the One who is given the preeminence in the center of government of the
universe that is the throne of the Almighty God. Our lives, families, church and
everything we have must have Him as the center as we await His return to see His
kingdom manifested on earth.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. What provokes in you the exaltation that Jesus has in heaven?
2. How are you placing Him as pre-eminent in your life, family, work, etc.?
3. What does it provoke in you to learn that Jesus will come to take authority
over all the nations of the earth to eradicate evil and establish justice?