In this message we will continue to consider our experience and enjoyment of Christ as the Lion-Lamb.
Revelation 5:7 says, “He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sits upon the throne.” Christ took the scroll out of the right hand of God the Father who sits upon the throne. This scroll must be the new covenant, the grand title deed in the universe, enacted with the blood of the Lamb for God’s redemption of the church, Israel, the world, and the universe.
Revelation 5:9 says of Christ, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals.” In the whole universe no one is worthy to open the mystery of God’s economy but Christ, the overcoming Lion and the redeeming Lamb. As the overcoming Lion, He defeated Satan for God, and as the redeeming Lamb, He put sin away for us. He is the only One qualified to unveil and carry out the mystery of God’s economy.
Our Savior is the Lamb as well as the Lion. This One is worthy to open the scroll. Apart from Him, no one in the universe is worthy to open the secret, the mystery, of God’s economy. But the Lion-Lamb is worthy because He has accomplished redemption and has won the victory over Satan. As the One who has brought God’s authority to the earth, He is the victorious, overcoming Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Lamb who has accomplished a full redemption for God’s chosen people. Therefore, He is completely qualified and positioned to open the mystery of God’s economy. When Christians say that Christ is worthy, their thought is that He is worthy to receive worship, praise, and thanks from us, His little creatures. However, most Christians fail to realize that He is worthy to open the seals of the secret of God’s economy. This aspect of the Lord’s worthiness is universal and immeasurable. Of course, Christ is worthy of our praises; He is worthy even of our lives. Nevertheless, we must realize that, according to Revelation 5, Christ’s worthiness is a matter of His being qualified to open the secret of God’s economy. The universe is a mystery which the scientists cannot unravel. They simply do not know the meaning or the purpose of the universe because it is a secret kept from them. But Christ is worthy to open this secret, for He is worthy to open the seals of God’s economy.
A scroll is a roll of parchment paper or other material. Because a scroll is rolled up, it is difficult to determine just how long it is. The scroll in Revelation 5 is eternally long. Only Christ is worthy to open this eternally-long scroll. We should not think that we have seen everything contained in this scroll. We will need eternity to see all that is included in it. When we are in the New Jerusalem, we will still be reading the contents of the scroll. For eternity we will say, “Now I see something more.” The surprise of the opening of the scroll will last for eternity. When we are in eternity, we may say, “The Lord’s surprise is eternal. Although we are now in eternity, we still cannot see the end.”
Christ has received from God the authority to administrate the entire universe (vv. 1, 6-7). Christ is the real Administrator of the heavens and all the nations on earth. In Matthew 28:18 the Lord told the disciples that all authority had been given to Him in heaven and on earth. In Revelation 5 Christ as the Lamb of God was standing in the midst of the four living creatures and the elders. The One who was sitting on the throne was holding a scroll sealed with seven seals. God was sitting on the throne holding this scroll, the schedule of His administration in the entire universe. This scroll is like a timetable of what will take place from the ascension of Christ to the New Jerusalem. The seven seals with which the scroll is sealed are actually its contents. These seven seals are the seven secrets of the universe, which are the mystery of God’s economy. Christ as the Lion-Lamb is qualified to open the scroll, that is, to open the mystery of God’s economy and to carry it out. This indicates that Christ is the One who has received the authority to administrate the entire universe. We all must worship Christ as the Administrator, as the One in the heavens administering all things for the fulfillment of God’s economy.
In Revelation 5 Christ is presented as the redeeming Lamb who is the Victor, qualified to take the scroll, open it, and execute it. In the Epistles of Paul, the scroll is the new testament mainly for our enjoyment of the riches of Christ, which have been bequeathed to us. However, there is another aspect to the new testament: God deals with the universe according to His testament. How God deals with all peoples, including the Jews, the nations, and Christendom, will be according to His testament. In this testament there are not only bequests for the believers to enjoy but also the matters of God’s dealing with different peoples and even with the heavens and the earth. The Redeemer of the whole universe is qualified to take, open, and execute the new testament.
Eventually, all things in the universe will be headed up in Christ (Eph. 1:10). The Jews, the heathen nations, and Christendom will be dealt with, and God’s kingdom will be ushered in on the earth. When all things are headed up in Christ, there will be the fullness of the times, in which the heavens, the earth, and everything therein will be new. Today things on the earth are confused, dark, and under death, causing many to shed tears. A day will come, however, when the whole universe will be in order, and there will be no more division, confusion, darkness, death, or tears. There will be a new heaven and a new earth in which all things will be headed up in Christ. In eternity all things in the universe will be in order. Christ alone is worthy to administrate the new heaven, the new earth, and the New Jerusalem. This is because only Christ is the One who died to redeem the whole universe, who conquered Satan through His death, who consummated the covenant with His redeeming blood, and who bequeathed the new testament to us. Christ is worthy to take up the scroll of the new testament, open it up, and execute all that is written therein by carrying out every bequest in the new testament and bringing all things in the universe into order. This is Christ’s ultimate heavenly ministry to carry out all that God has designed in His economy.