‘THE LION of JUDAH’ became ‘THE SACRIFICIAL LAMB’ for US!
December
26 Bible Reading: Revelation Chapters 4-6
‘THE LION of JUDAH’ became ‘THE SACRIFICIAL LAMB’ for US!
‘So I wept much, because no one
was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it. 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." 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. Then He came and took the scroll
out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne’. (Rev 5:4-7)
In the above
passage we see the consummation of God’s twofold
purpose in history: to reclaim His
kingdom and to redeem His people.
This twofold victory over Satan was
first predicted in Genesis 3:15 and then covenanted to Abraham in the promise
of a land and a Seed (see Gen. 12:1–3, Deut. 30:1–5, 2 Sam. 7:12–16). What we
can visualize through the pages of this last prophetical book is how God will
finally fulfill His ultimate purpose
that He has planned before time began!
When Apostle
John wept much as it appeared that no one was found worthy to open the scroll
containing God’s revelation, one of the elders comforted John with the glad
news that Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, was qualified to open the
scroll, break the seals, and thus release the judgments.
In
Revelation, our Lord Jesus Christ is presented both as the sacrificial Lamb for
the world (Redeemer, see John 1:29) and Lion of Judah (Ruler, see Gen. 49:10).
At His First Coming, He was the Lamb for the ultimate sacrifice and became our Savior. At His Second Coming, He will be the Lion, our Ruler and Judge. Christ has the
right to judge, possess, and rule the earth because of His submission to the
death of the Cross (Phil. 2:8–11).
Apostle John
further saw God the Father on the throne and the Lamb coming and taking the
scroll out of His right hand, symbolizing a transfer
of authority from the Father to the Son to reveal the future and to execute
judgment. This transfer precipitated an outpouring of praise for the Lamb
because it signaled that Christ would begin judging in response to the prayers
of believers throughout history (v. 8). As Lamb, Jesus offers salvation to
everyone who will believe in Him; as Lion, one day He will judge all those who
reject Him.
Let us
understand that Jesus Christ, who had
ultimate power and authority became the sacrificial Lamb for the ultimate
sacrifice for our sins. Let us sincerely thank Him today for paying the ultimate price of our redemption!
