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The men whom the Bible calls prophets are directly responsible for the writings which all believers hold dear. These writings are distinct from every other class of literature in that they reflect the actual words of God delivered through the prophets; collectively these writings comprise THE Word of God. The final biblical reference to the prophets and their work is contained in the final chapter of the Bible (Revelation 22) and it is the basis from which we began this study. A review of our observations concerning this verse plus some additional thoughts will serve as our message for today and for our springboard into this extensive study.

"Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, ‘See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.’ And he said to me, ‘Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand.’" (Revelation 22.8-10). From this text, we have extracted three major points germane to this topic; these points are: 1) The prophets are entirely responsible for the writing of the Scriptures, 2) The Scriptures are the sole source of actual knowledge of God, His character, and His will for men today, and 3) The Bible must be revered as God’s word in order to obtain a proper estimate of our Creator and in order to properly worship Him.

We make one final point from the focus text prior to beginning this miniseries in earnest and that point is this: The work of the prophets was to reveal not to conceal the will of God. The angel told John, "Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand." The import so obvious that it ought to go without saying, but due to the error that is taught on the subject, we state it forthright: The Bible is meant to be understood just as it is written! One does not need a "key to the scriptures" in order to understand them (that is above the key of intelligence and the moral capacity given to every responsible human being). Furthermore, God does not need to enlighten the reader beyond the actual enlightenment contained in the Scriptures. In other words, God does not have to reveal what He meant when He revealed what He meant! Think about it! The Calvinist doctrine which is prominently taught in many circles holds that God’s Spirit must quicken and enlighten the reader of Scripture before any light can be obtained from them. This doctrine contradicts the import of today’s focus text and it contradicts common sense! Why was John not to seal up the book? Answer: Because it was THE source of information needed by its readers and sealing it would make their obtaining of the information impossible. Implicit in this text is the fact that the Bible is intended to reveal and not to conceal! God does not need to reveal what He meant when He revealed what He meant! How absurd such a doctrine and how damaging it is to the actual purpose of the Scriptures!

Thank God that He reveals Himself through the Scriptures and does not hide Himself in them!

Questions:

1. What are the three major points made thus far from the focus text?

2. Why was John not to seal up the words that had been written? What are some general implications about Scripture that we can extract from this specific text?

3. Why would God not need to reveal Himself in some other way if the Bible is God’s revelation of Himself to mankind?

4. What harm is done to the quest for Bible study and understanding by the Calvinist doctrine?

"Today's Little Lift" from Jim Bullington

Comfort in Isaiah II (12-14-10)