October, 1941
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S -
87* T h e b o o k o p r e v e l a t io n is a book of Unveilings as the English name and the Greek word “ apok- alupsis” indicate. It lifts us up out of the realm of things mundane and draws aside the curtain for a glimpse of those beings who are untrammeled with the demands of things fleshly and earthly. We find that those who are Inhabit ing the celestial city are perpetually in a state of jubilation and praise. We . f i nd , moreover, that the objects of praise are not the angels or even the best of redeemed men, but always and only the Godhead Itself. The dwellers in that City are telling forth day and bight the wondrous attributes of the One that sits on the throne, and they are chanting the greatness of His work. We want to make particular mention of four great songs that are recorded in this great finale to the Word of God, the Book of Revelation. It is not specifically recorded that all these great ascriptions of praise are sung, but we believe the indications are undeniable that they were, and thus we are speak-, ing of them as oratorios. T h e O ra torio o f Creation The first great oratorio we find re corded in the last part of chapter 4. It is not sung by' the whole body of the heavenly choir, but by the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders. This wonderful song we are calling “The Oratorio of Creation.” It will be noted that this is the theme of the song: “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive honor and glory and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Rev. 4:11). God is the Author and Creator of the things infinite and things infinitesimal. . The three Persons of the ¡Godhead have different functions in the creative work. God the Father is consistently set forth in Scripture as b e i n g the Originator, the Designer of all things; the Son is invariably the One who as sumes the responsibility for the carry ing out of that which the Father has designed, and the Holy Spirit is repre sented as being the Person who actually brings into being what the Father has designed and what the Son has com manded. “God [when the word ‘God’ is used without any Person’s being specified, it usually refers to the Father] . . . hath . . . spoken unto us by his Son, . . . by whom also he made the worlds” (Heb. 1:1, 2). Obviously, then, God the Father made thè worlds through the medium of God the Son. Verse 3 speaks of God the Son as “upholding all things by thé word of his power.” He is issuing this “word of . . . power” to the Third Person who is the active Sustainer. It Was Christ who said, “Let there be light,” and the Holy Spirit whoy
brooding over the primeval c h a o s , brought the light into being by His active operation. The Psalmist tells us, “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath [Spirit] of his mouth” (Psa. 33:6). Christ issued the word, and the Holy Spirit carried it out. Job tells us, “By his Spirit he hath garnished the heavens” (26:13), and also, “The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath [Spirit] of /the Almighty hath given me life” (33:4): God the Father, then, is the Architect, God the Son the Contractor, God the Holy Spirit the Builder. And as the Catechism states it, “These three are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory.” Truly we can re peat with Paul, “Great is the mystery of godliness” (1 Tim. 3:16). It is a mystery too deep for the mind of man to fathom, yet we can enter into some part of this great mystery. . “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power” ! Who but the great God the Creator is worthy of receiving glory and honor and power? John says of Christ, “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing m a d e that was made” (John 1:3). The inspired Apostle caught a little glimpse of the glory of the Creator. It is thought by many that the Gospel according to John was written after John had seen t h e s e heavenly visions. Small wonder then that the Gospel is permeated with the thought of the Godhead of Christ. “We beheld his glory, the glory as of. the
only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (1:14). But the oratorio tells us not only that He is the Creator of all things, but also that He is Himself the Object of the creative work. If there is one thing that the Scriptures teach, but which seems to have been overlooked by many would-be expounders of the Word, it is the ¡fact that there is no work or purpose of God that-does not begin and end with God Himself. Man is a utility to the accomplish ment of the divine purposes, and God has given him a lofty position if he will but accept it, but man is, neither author nor finisher. Christ is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the ending, the first and the last (Rev. 1:8, 11; 21:6; 22:13), Unless this great principle is understood, the purport of the mass of Scripture will be missed. “For by h[pi were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or prin cipalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” (Col. 1:16; cf. Rom. 11:36). T h e O ra torio o f R edem p tion The second oratorio of heaven is found recorded in Revelation 5:9-14. This mighty chorus we call “The Oratorio of Redemption.” This great paean of praise is directed to the Lamb who was slain, and who has accom plished a redemption of men from “everyi kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation” through the shedding of His- blood (v. 9). It should be noted that the first part of this oratorio was sung by exactly the same group who sang the Oratorio of
By JAMES R. GRAHAM, Jr. Revelation 4:9-11; 5:8-14; 16:4-7; 11:15, 16.
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