"In the scene that John describes throughout
the Revelation there is an obvious celebration of victory. In
each of the "camera angles" that John recorded with
his literary camcorder, God in Christ is seen to be the victor
and worthy of praise. Christ's "finished work" in the
cross and resurrection is the basis of His victorious power (5:6,9;
7:14), for "He was declared the Son of God with power by
the resurrection from the dead" (Rom. 1:4). The conflict
that led to His suffering and death, though, is continued in
those who are identified with Him and in whom Jesus Christ dwells.
The life of Christ in Christians will elicit the same conflict
with satanic religion that Jesus incurred while incarnated on
earth, leading to continued personal suffering and physical death.
This is what the Christians of the first century, and of every
age thereafter, need to remember when their lives and the activities
of the church do not appear to be very victorious. The Scriptures
are abundantly clear about this identification with suffering
and death, explaining that Christians will be hated (John 15:18),
persecuted (Mark 10:30; John 15:20; II Cor. 4:9; II Tim. 3:12);
afflicted (Col. 1:24); suffer (Acts 9:16; Rom. 8:17; II Cor.
1:5; Phil. 3:10; Col. 1:24; I Pet. 2:21; 4:13); experience tribulation
(John 16:33; Acts 14:22;Rev. 1:9); and experience death (II Cor.
4:10,11; Phil. 3:10). Christians who understand this are the
only ones who can "see" the victory in the midst of
the ongoing conflict, and sing praises to God and Christ. Such
Christians, along with John, already have a glimpse of the heavenly
hymns of victory that are recorded particularly in chapters four
and five of the Revelation.
Jesus is always realistic about our present
condition on earth. We may be able to look to the future and
see in a vision the victory celebration of Jesus Christ (chapters
four and five), but we are still "in the world" (John
17:11,18) and experiencing the hindrances of that one who is
the "god of this world" (II Cor. 4:4), who still has
"the power of death" (Heb. 2:14). Faithful Christians
continue to be brutalized and killed (Rom. 8:36; 12:1; I Cor.
15:31; II Cor. 4:10,11; Phil. 3:10). Christians are mocked, ostracized,
and treated with injustice. Life is not fair in this world! The
Christians at the end of the first century were aware of this,
as well as Christians in every age since then. The risen Lord
Jesus is also aware of what is going on in the world, and by
the pictorial representation of the breaking of the seals explains
the on-going worldly and religious phenomena over which He is
victorious. The victory has been won by His "finished work"
(John 19:30) in the past, and we can look forward with hope and
assurance to the heavenly consummation of the victory in the
future, but the present circumstances seem to loom so large on
the horizon of human perspective. We concur with Paul that we
are "more than conquerors through Christ" (Rom. 8:37),
but the diabolical effects of "the ruler of this world"
(John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11) seem to be winning the day, especially
that most subtle satanic subterfuge of religion. The conflict
between Christ and Satan, between Christianity and religion,
continues to rage in every age. Jesus wants to assure Christians
in every age that He will be victorious over every diabolic expression
of religion which might arise throughout church history.
Revealing Himself to be the only One qualified
to break the sequence of the seals, Jesus is encouraging Christians
throughout the "enigma of the interim" to remain firm
in their identification with Him, the Overcomer. Only by faithful
receptivity of His character and activity will Christians participate
in His victory. The arena of testing is right now. We live on
the battlefield in the midst of spiritual warfare between God
and Satan, between Christianity and religion. Day by day, moment
by moment, we make the decisions of faith as to whether we will
trust Jesus Christ, even unto death and martyrdom. Jesus instructed
His followers previously, "Blessed are those who are persecuted
for the sake of righteousness. Blessed are you when men revile
you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you
falsely, on account of Me" (Matt. 5:10,11). He who "loses
his life for My sake, shall find it" (Matt. 10:39).
The breaking of the fifth seal connects
with the reality of death by martyrdom that was alluded to within
the messages to the seven churches as the Christians there bore
the deadly brunt of religious persecution (2:10,13). Christian
martyrs through the centuries have suffered from the violence,
injustice and death caused by religion. When the fifth seal is
removed Jesus reveals "the souls of those who had been slain
because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which
that had maintained" (6:9). These souls are said to be "underneath
the altar" which would seem to allude to a temple-like scene
in heaven, but we know that there is no temple there (Rev. 21:22),
so it may indicate that they are "near to the heart of God."
Those who have inflicted death upon these Christian martyrs are
"those who dwell on the earth" (6:10). In contrast
to Christians who are "citizens of heaven" (Phil. 3:20),
religionists are "earth-dwellers" and "world-agents"
of the "god of this world" (II Cor. 4:4). The primary
"front" for Satan's earth-bound "world-system"
is religion. Christians have often failed to recognize that the
chief earthly enemy of the Christian faith is religion. Christianity
is not be identified with or aligned with religion. Religion
is Satan's organized counterfeit and subterfuge to deceive mankind
and undermine the work of Christ. It is always antagonistic to
Christians. Religion is responsible for more deaths by martyrdom
among Christians that any other agent. Many Christians have been
murdered in the midst of religious "heresy-hunting"
and inquisitions as documented in Foxe's Book of Martyrs.
Religion then turns around and plays off of the martyrs to create
an incentive for their adherents to "measure up" to
the sacrifice of the martyrs. It uses martyrs as incentive for
vengeance against alleged enemies. It even beatifies martyrs
into elevated "saints" to be revered and worshipped
instead of Jesus Christ. No wonder the martyrs cry out to God
to judge the earth-dwelling religionists and avenge their blood
(6:10)! Their cry is not an uncharacteristic cry for retaliatory
vengeance, but expresses their desire to see Christianity vindicated
against the injustice of religion which has promulgated such
murderous martyrdom of faithful Christians." ~James A. Fowler~
