7 Seals of REVELATION SERIES: Fifth Seal

 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the

testimony which they held and they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth? Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.

Revelation 6:9-11

The blood of the martyrs that the papacy killed during her reign now cry out for justice. God gives these martyrs a white robe and tells them to rest for a while until the number of the end time martyrs is complete.

Following the period of papal persecution, the time covered by this seal would begin when the Reformation began to undermine the papal fabrication, and restrain the persecuting power of the Roman Catholic Church.

Here observe, (1.) Where he saw them - under the altar; at the foot of the altar of incense, in the most holy place; (2.) What was the cause in which they suffered - the word of God and the testimony which they held, for believing the word of God, and attesting or confessing the truth of it; this profession of their faith they held fast without wavering, even though they died for it.

Q: How can dead souls cry out?
Genesis 4:3, 4: And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.  Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering. 

Note: Both Cain and Abel brought an offering to place on the altar of sacrifice. Besides bringing a grain offering, Abel also offered an animal sacrifice. Thus, Abel obeyed God and worshiped Him as He had commanded. Abel was righteous. The central issue of the story of Cain and Abel was obedience and worship.

Hebrews 11:4: By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness [marturía] that he was righteous, God testifying [marturía] of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. 

Note: Abel’s sacrifice gave witness. Remarkably, the word ‘witness’, used twice in this verse, is marturía from where we get the word ‘martyr’. Even after his death, Abel’s sacrifice gives witness or testimony of his faithfulness to God.

Genesis 4:8: Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.
Genesis 4:10: And He said, What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground. 

Note: Satan was the ringleader in Abel’s death: not as Cain who was

of the wicked one and murdered his brother, and why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's righteous. 1 John 3:12. The death of Abel was a great travesty in justice.

Abel’s blood cried out for vindication and justice. To all appearances, the unrighteous won and righteous lost. At some point, the record needed to be rectified. The blood of Abel symbolically cried out for reparation.

Hebrews 12:24: To Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. Note: The blood of Jesus speaks more powerfully than that of Abel. Abel’s blood cried out for justice, however, the blood of Jesus provides justice.

Leviticus 17:11: For the life [nephesh] of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.

Note: The Bible describes the death of the righteous at the hands of the wicked as an oblation or offering. In John 16:2 Jesus explained that those who would slay His followers would actually believe that they were offering God an act of worship. The word “service” in this text is latrein (where we get the word idolatry from) which is generally translated ‘service’ in the King James Version but actually means ‘worship’.

Significantly, Paul refers to his martyr’s death as a pouring out of sacrifice (2 Timothy 4:6-8). The death of the righteous at the hands of the wicked was a sweet savor unto God because it revealed the faithfulness of His people (Ephesians 5:2)

“In the thirteenth century was established that most terrible of all the engines of the papacy—the Inquisition. The prince of darkness wrought with the leaders of the papal hierarchy. In their secret councils Satan and his angels controlled the minds of evil men, while unseen in the midst stood an angel of God, taking the fearful record of their iniquitous decrees and writing the history of deeds too horrible to appear to human eyes. “Babylon the great” was “drunken with the blood of the saints.” The mangled forms of millions of martyrs cried to God for vengeance [notice the allusion to the fifth seal] upon that apostate power.” E.G.W.

*The fifth seal makes it clear that the crying out of the martyrs has two distinct historical stages—the martyrs of the past (those that the papacy killed during the fourth seal) and the martyrs of the future (those whom the papacy will kill when it resurrects from its deadly wound).  

*The conferral of the white robe is another way of expressing that the martyrs formed a character fit for heaven. In the investigative judgment, God will vindicate before the universe the martyrs who were faithful to Jesus and died for Him.

*The Second Stage of Martyrs Revelation 13:3: And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed and all the world marveled and followed the beast. After the deadly wound heals, the papacy will persecute a future group of martyrs as it did the martyrs of the past.

Summarizing: The papacy slew the saints of the Most High during the 1260 years and therefore their innocent blood symbolically cried out for justice and vindication. 

In 1844, God began to examine the case of each one. God assigned to the faithful martyrs white robes and told them to rest (in the grave) until the number of the future martyrs is complete. The Roman Catholic papacy, in union with apostate Protestantism during the little time of trouble preceding probation will slay the rest of the martyrs when the land beast heals the wound of the sea beast. Those who refuse to worship the beast and his image and to receive the mark will be slain (Revelation 20:4). God will then vindicate the end time martyrs and assign them white robes in the final stages of the judgment of the living.

The Protestant Reformation began its work. It began to be seen that the church was corrupt and disreputable, and those against whom it vented its rage were the good, the pure, and the true.

Drawn/taken from the book Daniel & Revelation by Uriah Smith---Study Guide by Stephen Bohr---Sermon by Walter Veith---Commentaries from Matthew Henry/Adam Clark---Revelation Made Clear

Creation Moment 1/24/2026 - Genetics vs. Evolution SERIES: SUMMARY

For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.... Colossians 1:16 NIV

"The first three sources of variation are woefully inadequate to account for the diversity of life we see on earth today. 

An essential feature of the creation model is the placement of considerable genetic variety in each created kind at the beginning.

Only thus can we explain the possible origin of horses, donkeys, and

zebras from the same kind; of lions, tigers, and leopards from the same kind; of some 118 varieties of the domestic dog, as well as jackals, wolves and coyotes from the same kind. 

*As each kind obeyed the Creator’s command to be fruitful and multiply, the chance processes of recombination and the more purposeful process of natural selection caused each kind to subdivide into the vast array we now see." 

CMI

7 Seals of REVELATION SERIES: Fourth Seal

 When He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, Come and see. So I looked, and behold, a pale horse and the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death [pestilence], and by the beasts of the earth. 

Revelation 6:7, 8

The period of the fourth horse is parallel to the period of the fourth church, Thyatira. 

The fourth seal represents the period of papal dominion during the ‘dark ages’. The scarcity of God’s Word and of rain led to spiritual famine, pestilence and death. In addition, the apostate church literally killed the martyrs who did not agree with the traditions of men.

*Color pale (chloros: The color of this horse is really a greenish pale as when a young shoot comes out of a tree. It is the paleness of death).

*Death and Hades (when a person dies, the grave follows).

*Fourth part of the earth (the devastating power of the fourth horse and its rider is not universal). 

*Famine (scarcity because of a scarcity of God’s word).
*Pestilence (in New Testament Greek the word thánatos technically means ‘death’. However, in 30 of the 50 times it appears in the Greek Old Testament (LXX) the Hebrew word deber is translated “pestilence”. To say that the fourth horse kills with death would be redundant. Death by the sword and famine brings pestilence or disease in its train and ultimately leads to death and the grave.

*Wild beasts (wicked leaders and nations who were inimical to God’s people and behaved like wild beasts).

Psalm 74:18, 19: Remember this, that the enemy has reproached, O LORD, and that a foolish people has blasphemed Your name. Oh, do not deliver the life of Your turtledove to the wild beast! Do not forget the life of Your poor forever.

“The symbols of earthly governments are wild beasts, but in the kingdom of Christ, men are called upon to behold, not a ferocious beast, but the Lamb of God.” E.G.W.

--The immediate aftermath of death is the place where the dead go, the grave. The word hades is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Sheol and it should consistently be translated “the grave”.

Hosea 13:14: I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction!

*The New King James Version of Revelation 6:8 tells us that power [the proper translation of exousia is ‘authority’] ‘was given’ to death and the grave to kill with the sword. 

It is hardly a coincidence that the little horn ‘was given’ power to make war against the saints and to overcome them for time, times and the dividing of time (Daniel 7:25). Likewise Revelation 13: 7 tells us that the beast ‘was given’ power to make war against the saints and to overcome them. The expression ‘was given’ connects the fourth rider with the Papal church.

*In symbolic terms, famine comes when the Holy Spirit, speaking through the Word of God is scarce. 

--During the Dark Ages, there was no rain (Revelation 11:6), and therefore bread (the Word of God) was scarce. 

--The result was famine (spiritual hunger). Famine, in turn, led to malnutrition and malnutrition led to pestilence and ultimately to spiritual death.

By the fourth part of the earth is doubtless meant the territory over which this power had jurisdiction; and the words "sword," and beasts of the earth, are figures denoting the means by which it has put to death millions of martyrs.

Drawn/taken from the book Daniel & Revelation by Uriah Smith---Study Guide by Stephen Bohr---Sermon by Walter Veith---Commentaries from Matthew Henry/Adam Clark---Revelation Made Clear

Creation Moment 1/23/2026 - Genetics vs. Evolution SERIES: Natural Selection

For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.... Colossians 1:16 NIV

"Natural selection is the obvious fact that some varieties of creatures are going to be more successful than others, and so they will contribute more offspring to future generations. 

A favorite example of natural section is the peppered moth of England, Biston betularia. As far as anyone knows, this moth has

always existed in two basic varieties, speckled and solid black. In pre-industrial England, many of the tree trunks were light in color. This provided a camouflage for the speckled variety, and the birds tended to prey more heavily on the black variety. Moth collections showed many more speckled than black ones. When the Industrial Age came to England, pollution darkened the tree trunks, so the black variety was hidden, and the speckled variety was conspicuous. Soon there were many more black moths than speckled.

As populations encounter changing environments, such as that described above or as the result of migration into a new area, natural selection favors the combinations of traits which will make the creature more successful in its new environment. This might be considered as the positive role of natural selection. The negative role of natural selection is seen in eliminating or minimizing harmful mutations when they occur." 

CMI

7 Seals of REVELATION SERIES: Third Seal

When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature
say, Come and see. So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine. 

Revelation 6:5, 6

The third seal represents the period when Constantine favored the Christian church and as a result persecution ceased and the world entered the church.
*An Era of Spiritual Darkness -- the darkness grew ever deeper because the papacy undertook a war against the Bible.

Proverbs 4:18, 19: But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.
The black horse represents darkness that came in from a rejection of God’s word. Where God’s word is not, there is darkness or blackness. Black represents sin, apostasy, error, heresy and human traditions.

“The accession of the Roman Church to power marked the beginning of the Dark Ages. As her power increased, the darkness deepened.” E.G.W.

Mosheim says:
"Those vain fictions, which an attachment to the Platonic philosophy

and to popular opinions had engaged the greatest part of the Christian doctors to adopt before the time of Constantine, were now confirmed, enlarged, and embellished in various ways. 

From hence arose that extravagant veneration for departed saints, and those absurd notions of a certain fire destined to purify separate souls, that now prevailed, and of which the public marks were everywhere to be seen. Hence also the celibacy of priests, the worship of images and relics, which in process of time almost utterly destroyed the Christian religion, or at least eclipsed its luster, and corrupted its very essence in the most deplorable manner. An enormous train of different superstitions were gradually substituted in the place of true religion and genuine piety."

*Another symbol for God’s Word is bread (Deuteronomy 8:3, 4; Matthew 4:4). During the third seal, there was not only a scarcity of light but also of bread. This is the reason why wheat and barley during this period were extremely expensive.

In short, both light and bread symbolize the Word of God (Matthew 4:4; Isaiah 55:2, 3, 10, 11; John 6:48-58, 63. Where there is no light and no bread there is death. Amos 8:11, 12 predicts a time when there will be famine in the land, not for bread but for the Word of God. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.
*The wine was a symbol of the blood of Jesus and the oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit.

To hurt God’s people is to despise the blood of Jesus and to offend the Holy Spirit (Zechariah 2:8; Matthew 25:40; Mark 9:41; Acts 9:4, 5).

"The apostle Paul declares that ‘all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.’ 2 Timothy 3:12. 

Why is it, then, that persecution seems in a great degree to slumber? The only reason is that the church has conformed to the world's standard and therefore awakens no opposition." E.G.W.

Here observe, 1. When a people loathe their spiritual food, God may justly deprive them of their daily bread. 

2. One judgment seldom comes alone; the judgment of war naturally draws after it that of famine; and those who will not humble themselves under one judgment must expect another and yet greater, for when God contends he will prevail.

The professed ministers of Christ, had no care for the flock, yet the Lord was not unmindful of them in this period of darkness. 

A voice comes from heaven. 

He takes care that the spirit of worldliness does not prevail to such a degree that Christianity should be entirely lost, or that the oil and the wine--should perish from the earth.

Drawn/taken from the book Daniel & Revelation by Uriah Smith---Study Guide by Stephen Bohr---Sermon by Walter Veith---Commentaries from Matthew Henry/Adam Clark---Revelation Made Clear

Creation Moment 1/22/2026 - Genetics vs. Evolution SERIES: Mutation

For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.... Colossians 1:16 NIV

"Now to consider the third source of variation, mutation. Mutations are mistakes in the genetic copying process. Each living cell has intricate molecular machinery designed for accurately copying DNA, the genetic molecule. But as in other copying processes mistakes do occur, although not very often. Once in every 10,000–100,000

copies, a gene will contain a mistake. The cell has machinery for correcting these mistakes, but some mutations still slip through. What kinds of changes are produced by mutations? Some have no effect at all, or produce so small a change that they have no appreciable effect on the creature. But many mutations have a significant effect on their owners.

Q: Based on the creation model, what kind of effect would we expect from random mutations, from genetic mistakes? 

A: We would expect virtually all of those which make a difference to be harmful, to make the creatures that possess them less successful than before. And this prediction is borne out most convincingly. Some examples help to illustrate this.

Geneticists began breeding the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, soon after the turn of the century, and since 1910 when the first mutation was reported, some 3,000 mutations have been identified. All of the mutations are harmful or harmless; none of them produce a more successful fruit fly—exactly as predicted by the creation model.

Is there, then, no such thing as a beneficial mutation? Yes, there is. A beneficial mutation is simply one that makes it possible for its possessors to contribute more offspring to future generations than do those creatures that lack the mutation.

Darwin called attention to wingless beetles on the island of Madeira. For a beetle living on a windy island, wings can be a definite disadvantage, because creatures in flight are more likely to be blown into the sea. Mutations producing the loss of flight could be helpful. The sightless cave fish would be similar. Eyes are quite vulnerable to injury, and a creature that lives in pitch dark would benefit from mutations that would replace the eye with scar-like tissue, reducing that vulnerability. In the world of light, having no eyes would be a terrible handicap, but is no disadvantage in a dark cave. While these mutations produce a drastic and beneficial change, it is important to notice that they always involve loss of information and never gain. One never observes the reverse occurring, namely wings or eyes being produced on creatures which never had the information to produce them." 

CMI

7 Seals of REVELATION SERIES: Second Seal

When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living
creature saying, Come and see. Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword. 

Revelation 6:3, 4

The Red Horse represents the persecutions against the church by the pagan Roman emperors until Constantine’s Edict of Toleration ended the persecution in the year 313 AD. The red horse is parallel to the second church, Smyrna.

It is the natural transition from the apostolic age to the Nicene age, yet leaving behind many important truths of the former (especially the Pauline doctrines) which were to be derived and explored in future ages. We can trace in it the elementary forms of the Catholic creed, organization, and worship, and also the germs of nearly all the corruptions of Greek and Roman Christianity.

As mentioned before this is the period of the church of Smyrna. There is much ‘death language’ in the message to the church of Smyrna. 

In fact, the name means “bittersweet myrrh”, a substance used to embalm the dead. Jesus presented Himself to this church as “the one who was dead and is alive forevermore (Revelation 2:8). Jesus encouraged the members of Smyrna to be faithful unto death (Revelation 2:10) and promised that the faithful would not be hurt by the second death (Revelation 2:11). The ten days of Smyrna are the ten years of Diocletian’s persecution from 303-313 AD.

In the Bible the color red represents bloodshed When the sword takes away peace from the earth the result is war and bloodshed (Isaiah 63:2; Nahum 2:3; Revelation 17:1-6).
*The sword symbolizes the Bible:
Hebrews 4:12, 13: For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
*Repeatedly, the Bible emphasizes that the preaching of the gospel brings peace to those who accept its message:
Ephesians 6:14, 15: Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

--The big question at this point is this, if the sword here is the Bible, why does it take away peace from the earth. 

The answer is simple. 

When sinners heed the message of the Bible, it brings personal peace. However, when sinners reject its message they rise to take away the peace of those who proclaim it.

“The gospel is a message of peace. Christianity is a system that, received and obeyed, would spread peace [key word in the second seal], harmony, and happiness throughout the earth. The gospel presents to them principles of life that are wholly at variance with their habits and desires, and they rise in rebellion against it. They hate the purity [first seal] that reveals and condemns their sins, and they persecute and destroy those who would urge upon them its just and holy claims. It is in this sense—because the exalted truths it brings occasion hatred and strife—that the gospel is called a sword [key word in the second seal]." E.G.W.

*The conquests of the first horse led to persecution under the second.

 The devil, deeply concerned about the many defections from his army launched a deadly persecution against those who were conquering the subjects of his kingdom through the preaching of the gospel.

Drawn/taken from the book Daniel & Revelation by Uriah Smith---Study Guide by Stephen Bohr---Sermon by Walter Veith---Commentaries from Matthew Henry/Adam Clark---Revelation Made Clear

Creation Moment 1/21/2026 - Genetics vs. Evolution SERIES: Recombination

For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.... Colossians 1:16 NIV

"This involves shuffling the genes and is the reason that children resemble their parents very closely but are not exactly like either one. The discovery of the principles of recombination was Gregor Mendel’s great contribution to the science of genetics. 

Mendel showed that while traits might be hidden for a generation they were not usually lost, and when new traits appeared it was because their genetic factors had been there all along. 

Recombination makes it possible for there to be limited variation within the created kinds. But it is limited because virtually all of the variations are produced by a reshuffling of the genes that are already there.

For example, from 1800, plant breeders sought to increase the sugar content of the sugar beet. And they were very successful. Over some

75 years of selective breeding it was possible to increase the sugar content from 6% to 17%. But there the improvement stopped, and further selection did not increase the sugar content. Why? Because all of the genes for sugar production had been gathered into a single variety and no further increase was possible.

Among the creatures Darwin observed on the Galápagos islands were a group of land birds, the finches. In this single group, we can see wide variation in appearance and in life-style. Darwin provided what I believe to be an essentially correct interpretation of how the finches came to be the way they are. A few individuals were probably blown to the islands from the South American mainland, and today’s finches are descendants of those pioneers. However, while Darwin saw the finches as an example of evolution, we can now recognize them merely as the result of recombination within a single created kind. The pioneer finches brought with them enough genetic variability to be sorted out into the varieties we see today." 

CMI

7 Seals of REVELATION SERIES: First Seal

 Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, Come and see. And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. 

Revelation 6:1, 2

The rider upon this horse went forth--where? His commission was unlimited. The gospel was to all the world.

The first seal is parallel to the first church, Ephesus. 

The white horse represents the conquests of the Apostolic Church and its rider symbolizes Jesus. The whiteness of the horse denotes the purity of faith in that age.

Revelation 19:11, 12: Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself.

In Zechariah 10:3-6, compares God’s people, Judah, to a conquering horse:

"Clad in the armor of Christ’s righteousness, the church is to enter upon her final conflict. ‘Fair as the moon, clear as the sun [Revelation 12:1] and terrible as an army with banners’ [Song of Solomon 6:10], she [the church] is to go forth into all the world conquering and to conquer [Revelation 6:1, 2]." E.G.W.

The white horse stands in contrast to the black horse of darkness. When the church loses its purity of doctrine and lifestyle it becomes a black horse. 

*2 Kings 13:17 (... And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the LORD'S deliverance,...) underlines that the bow and arrow represent God’s deliverance in battle.

*The word for crown here is stephanos. With few exceptions, the stephanos is the crown that is given to one who has gained the victory after a struggle.

James 1:12: Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

*Conquering and to conquer - The literal translation of the phrase is “overcoming in order that he might overcome.” 

We must link this phrase with the messages to the seven churches where at the end of each message we find the dictum: “to him that overcomes.”

During the Christian Dispensation, the faithful church fights a spiritual war against spiritual enemies in the enemy’s spiritual territory with a spiritual armor and spiritual weapons. The purpose of the war is to conquer human hearts (Ephesians 6:10-18; Romans 13:11-14; 2 Corinthians 10:1-6; 1 Timothy 6:12; 2 Timothy 4:7, 8).

Christ's work is not all done at once. We are ready to think, when the gospel goes forth, it should carry all the world before it, but it often meets with opposition, and moves slowly; however, Christ will do His own work effectually, in His own time and way.

 It involves God’s people attempting to convince the devil’s soldiers to desert his army and join Christ’s army.

Drawn/taken from the book Daniel & Revelation by Uriah Smith---Study Guide by Stephen Bohr---Sermon by Walter Veith---Commentaries from Matthew Henry/Adam Clark---Revelation Made Clear

Creation Moment 1/20/2026 - Genetics vs. Evolution SERIES: Environment

For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.... Colossians 1:16 NIV

"This refers to all of the external factors which influence a creature during its lifetime. 

For example, one person may have darker skin than another simply because she is exposed to more sunshine. 

Or another may have larger muscles because he exercises more. 

Such environmentally-caused variations generally have no importance to the history of life, because they cease to exist when their owners die; they are not passed on. 

--In the middle 1800s, some scientists believed that variations caused by the environment could be inherited. Charles Darwin accepted

this fallacy, and it no doubt made it easier for him to believe that one creature could change into another. 

He thus explained the origin of the giraffe’s long neck in part through ‘the inherited effects of the increased use of parts’ In seasons of limited food supply, Darwin reasoned, giraffes would stretch their necks for the high leaves, supposedly resulting in longer necks being passed on to their offspring."

CMI

7 Seals of REVELATION SERIES: Intro

And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a

scroll [biblíon] written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals. Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals? And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it. So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it.

Revelation 5:1-4

The Sealed Book.--The books in use at the time the Revelation was given were not in the form of books as now made. They did not consist of a series of leaves bound together, but were composed of strips of parchment or other material, rolled up. On this point, John Wesley remarks:

"The usual books of the ancients were not like ours, but were volumes, or long pieces of parchment, rolled upon a long stick, as we frequently roll silks. Such was this represented, which was sealed with seven seals. Not as if the apostle saw all the seals at once: for there were seven volumes wrapped up on within another, each of which was sealed: so that upon opening and and unrolling the first, the second appeared to be sealed up till that was opened, and so on to the seventh."

Note: The word “worthy” means qualified.

Note: The worthy person could open the book and read its contents until all seven seals had been broken. A crisis of universal proportions ensued because there was no one in heaven, on earth or under the earth who was qualified to break the seals, open the book and read its contents. 

John was not so much concerned with the breaking of the seals as he was with the contents of the scroll. John’s tears were not tears of curiosity; they were tears of desperation and supreme agony.
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 [past, “has

overcome” John 16:33 refers to the overcoming of Jesus] to open [future tense] the scroll and to loose [future tense] 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.
Revelation 1:5,6

The Lion of the tribe of Juda - Jesus Christ, who sprang from this tribe, as his genealogy proves.
The Root of David - Christ was the root of David as to his Divine nature; he was a branch out of the stem of Jesse as to his human nature.

“The Savior is presented before John under the symbols of the Lion of the tribe of Judah and of "a Lamb as it had been slain." (Revelation 5:5, 6) These symbols represent the union of omnipotent power and self-sacrificing love. The Lion of Judah, so terrible to the rejectors of His grace, will be the Lamb of God to the obedient and faithful. The pillar of fire that speaks terror and wrath to the transgressor of God's law is a token of light and mercy and deliverance to those who have kept His commandments. The arm strong to smite the rebellious will be strong to deliver the loyal. Everyone who is faithful will be saved.” 

Acts of the Apostles, p. 589
Note: When John saw the Lamb, the wounds on His body were still fresh. He had just come from the battlefield and had the wounds to prove it. He was standing in the midst of the throne because kings and priests stood at their anointing.
Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures [the cherubim and seraphim] and the twenty-four elders [the representatives of the sinless worlds of the universe] fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Revelation 5:7,8

Here observe, (1.) The object of their worship - the Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ; it is the declared will of God that all men should honor the Son as they honor the Father; for He has the same nature. 

(2.) Their posture: They fell down before Him, gave Him not an inferior sort of worship, but the most profound adoration. 

(3.) The instruments used in their adorations - harps and vials; the harps were the instruments of praise, the vials were full of odours or incense, which signify the prayers of the saints: prayer and praise should always go together. 

And they sang a new song, saying: You are worthy [qualified] to take the scroll and to open its seals; for You were [past] slain, and have redeemed [past] us [people] to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made [past] us [them] kings and priests to our God; and we [they] shall [future] reign on the earth.

Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne [they stand on the outer circle of the throne, the creatures and the elders], the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice: Worthy is the Lamb who was [past] slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing! And every creature that is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever! Then the four living creatures said, "Amen!" And the twenty four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever.
Revelation 5:9-14

The matter of their song: In this new song, 

[1.] They acknowledge the infinite fitness and worthiness of the Lord Jesus for this great work of opening and executing the counsel and purposes of God: 

[2.] They mention the grounds and reasons of this worthiness; and though they do not exclude the dignity of His person as God, without which He had not been sufficient for it, yet they chiefly insist upon the merit of His sufferings, which He had endured for them; these more sensibly struck their souls with thankfulness and joy. 

Here, First, They mention His suffering: "Thou wast slain, slain as a sacrifice, thy blood was shed." 

Secondly, The fruits of His sufferings. 

1. Redemption to God; Christ has redeemed His people from the bondage of sin, guilt, and Satan, redeemed them to God, set them at liberty to serve Him. 

2. High exaltation: Thou hast made us to our God kings and priests, and we shall reign on the earth.

Note: The mighty angel’s two-fold question will now receive an answer. 

Q: Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll and why? 

A: The Lamb can do it because he overcame and shed His blood to redeem or buy back the inheritance that Adam lost. 

The word ‘redeem’ in Revelation 5:9 means ‘to buy something back by paying a price’. It translates the Greek word hagorazo.

This passage explains the reason why Jesus, and only Jesus, 

was qualified to break the seals and open the scroll: 

Because He shed His blood.

Drawn/taken from the book Daniel & Revelation by Uriah Smith---Study Guide by Stephen Bohr---Sermon by Walter Veith---Commentaries from Matthew Henry/Adam Clark---Revelation Made Clear

IN the NEWS - "Reserved"? pt. 1

Which I have reserved for the time of trouble, Job 38:23 NLT

Q: Is this Geological mess below the surface of the Pacific Coast, due to the Global Flood, something that is "Reserved" as a coming calamity for the Time of Trouble?

"The Iberian Peninsula — that massive piece of Europe holding Spain and Portugal — is not the static landmass we imagine. It’s

rotating clockwise at a pace too small for humans to feel, yet large enough to reshape how scientists understand earthquake risk across southwestern Europe and North Africa.

The slight rotation of the peninsula is due to the colossal and chaotic collision between the African and Eurasian tectonic plates. Where those plates meet, the crust does not behave as a single clean boundary. Instead, it bends, absorbs stress in some places, and transfers it in others, twisting all of Iberia in the process.

Africa and Eurasia are converging at a rate of about 4 to 6 millimeters per year. That’s roughly the speed fingernails grow. In the Atlantic Ocean and along the Algerian coast, the boundary between the plates is relatively clear. Near southern Spain and northern Morocco, it dissolves into a wide zone of interacting blocks, folded mountain belts, and hidden faults.

Key to this geological dynamic is the Alboran domain, a fragment of Earth’s crust beneath the western Mediterranean. This block is sliding westward and shaping the curved mountain chain known as the Gibraltar Arc, which links Spain’s Betic Cordillera to Morocco’s Rif Mountains.

East of the strait, the crust of the

Gibraltar Arc acts like a buffer. It absorbs much of the stress produced by the Africa–Eurasia collision. West of the strait, that buffer fades. There, Iberia runs headlong into Africa.

The peninsula is thus deforming and rotating clockwise, nudged from below and from the side by an asymmetric collision. At human speed, this motion feels irrelevant. At earthquake speed, it matters.

The most famous reminder came in 1755, when a massive earthquake offshore of Lisbon — estimated at magnitude 8.7 — devastated the city and sent tsunamis across the Atlantic."

ZMEScience

IN the NEWS - "Reserved"? pt. 2

Which I have reserved for the time of trouble, Job 38:23 NLT
Q: Is this Geological mess below the surface of the Pacific Coast, due to the Global Flood, something that is "Reserved" as a coming calamity for the Time of Trouble?

"By closely monitoring clusters of extremely small earthquakes, scientists are uncovering new details about a dangerous and complex

region off Northern California. 

This area marks the meeting point of the San Andreas fault and the Cascadia subduction zone, a place capable of producing powerful and destructive earthquakes.

Off the coast of Humboldt County lies the Mendocino Triple Junction, where three of Earth’s major tectonic plates come together. South of this point, the Pacific plate moves northwest alongside the North American plate, forming the San Andreas fault. North of the junction, the Gorda (or Juan de Fuca) plate pushes northeast and slides beneath the North American plate, sinking into the Earth’s mantle in a process known as subduction.

Just as the Sun and Moon influence ocean tides, their gravity also exerts subtle pulls on tectonic plates. When those forces line up with the natural direction of plate movement, the number of small earthquakes increases.

The updated model shows that the region contains five moving pieces rather than just three major plates. Two of these pieces are completely hidden below the surface.

At the southern end of the Cascadia subduction zone, the researchers

found that a section of the North American plate has broken off and is being pulled downward along with the Gorda plate as it sinks beneath North America.

South of the triple junction, the Pacific plate is dragging a mass of rock known as the Pioneer fragment beneath the North American plate as it moves north. The fault separating the Pioneer fragment from the North American plate lies nearly flat and cannot be seen from the surface." 

SciTechDaily