The Key to Scripture

Jesus is the one who unveils the mysteries of God, and only he is qualified to reveal the “unseen God.” In him, all the promises of God find their substance. He is the interpretive key that unlocks the Hebrew Scriptures and provides the correct understanding of Bible prophecy. The proclamation of “Christ Crucified” is the “power and wisdom of God,” and there is no knowledge of the Father apart from him.

The Prologue of John’s Gospel presents him as the LOGOS, the true revelation and expression of God. He is the one in whom the Word “became flesh,” and the glory of God now “tabernacles” in him. John contrasts this very same Jesus with the earlier revelation given through Moses at Mount Sinai - (John 1:14-18).

[Key - Photo by Jaye Haych on Unsplash]

Moses “gave the Law,” but “grace and truth came to be through Jesus Christ.” He alone has seen God, and therefore, he alone is qualified to “interpret” anything and everything about his Father. He is the lens through which Scripture is properly understood -(John 1:16-18).

The Letter to the Hebrews opens with a similar declaration, only rather than being the “Logos made flesh,” the ultimate “Word” of God has been spoken in His Son. In contrast, the “words” spoken previously “in the prophets” were partial and promissory – “In many parts and many ways.” Now, He has spoken with great finality, clarity, and completeness in Jesus Christ.

Unlike all the prophets and the Levitical priests who came before him, the Son “achieved the purification of sins,” and he sat down at God’s “right hand.” Consequently, he has inherited the “name” that is vastly superior to that of angels, Moses, Aaron, or any other predecessor, namely, “Son” - (Hebrews 1:1-4).

Likewise, his high priesthood “after the order of Melchizedek” is superior in every way to the Levitical priesthood, and unlike the repeated animal sacrifices of the old system, his “once for all” sacrifice “achieved the purifications of sins.” The New Covenant that he inaugurated is based on the unshakeable foundation of his Death and Resurrection.

THE SLAIN LAMB

In the Book of Revelation, he is the “Lamb” who was “slain” to redeem his people, and therefore, he alone is “worthy” to open the “Sealed Scroll.” He unveils and implements its contents, a process that will end in nothing less than the New Creation - (Revelation 5:6-12).

The vision received by John is the “revelation of Jesus Christ.” It belongs to the Crucified One, and with it, he provides his servants with the correct understanding of events that “must soon come to pass.” Moreover, he interprets and applies the contents of Revelation for his “assemblies.”

For example, the “one like a Son of Man” explained that the “Seven Golden Lampstands” represented the seven “assemblies of Asia,” and the “seven stars” held by this figure were “seven messengers” - (Revelation 1:20).

Jesus possesses all authority, including the “Keys of Death and Hades,” because of his past Death and Resurrection. “I am the Living One, and I became dead; and behold, I am living unto the ages of ages.” Not even the realm of the Dead is beyond his reach. He is the one who “opens and no man shuts,” including the correct understanding of Bible prophecy - (Revelation 1:18-20).

He is the “Faithful Witness and the Firstborn of the Dead.” Both titles refer to his Death and Resurrection. Not only does Jesus possess the Book of Revelation, but he also is the Master Key that unlocks the meaning of its images.

Upon his arrival on the “Throne,” he took the “the Sealed Scroll” and began to open its “Seven Seals,” unveiling its contents for his servants to understand. Unlike the Book of Daniel, the “Revelation of Jesus Christ” is an UNSEALED book - (Daniel 12:1, Revelation 5:6-12, 22:10).

[Key - Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash]

Thus, Jesus is the indispensable key to unlocking the correct understanding of Bible prophecy, indeed, of the whole of Scripture. The Christ of the New Testament interprets the Hebrew Bible, NOT vice versa.

He is the true and greater dwelling place of God, the inaugurator of the New Covenant, the once-for-all sacrifice for sins, the Ruler of the Cosmos, and the ultimate expression and manifestation of the “unseen God.” The substance foreshadowed in the Hebrew Scriptures is actualized in him, and in Jesus alone, all the promises of God receive their “Yea!” and “Amen!”.

In every conceivable sense, Jesus is the Logos, the “Word of God” “spoken in His Son,” and “made flesh” and manifested for all men to see in this man from Nazareth. Truth, life, and salvation are found only in Jesus.

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RELATED POSTS:

• His Superior Word - (God spoke His definitive word in His Son, Jesus of Nazareth. All previous words spoken in the prophets were preparatory, promissory, and partial)

• His Supremacy - (Through a series of comparisons, the letter to the Hebrews demonstrates the supremacy of the Son over his predecessors)

• Let Us Draw Near - (Disciples must hold fast to their confession and approach Jesus in boldness, especially in times of great need)