«　WEEK 40　DAY 6　»

　　Rev. 5:9-10 And they sing a new song, saying: You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for You were slain and have purchased for God by Your blood men out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made them a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign on the earth.

　　In Revelation 5:9-10 we see the elders singing a new song of praise to the Lamb…The song here is new because the Lamb whom it praises had just been slain. This new song praises the worthiness of the Lamb…In the whole universe no one is worthy to open the mystery of God's economy but Christ, the overcoming Lion and the redeeming Lamb. As the overcoming Lion, He has defeated Satan for God, and as the redeeming Lamb, He has put away sin for us. He is the only One qualified to unveil and carry out the mystery of God's economy. (Life-study of Revelation, p. 224)

　　Our Savior is the Lamb as well as the Lion. This One is worthy to open the scroll. Apart from Him, no one in the universe is worthy to open the secret, the mystery, of God's economy. But the Lion-Lamb is worthy because He has accomplished redemption and has won the victory over Satan. As the One who has brought God's authority to the earth, He is the victorious, overcoming Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Lamb who has accomplished a full redemption for God's chosen people. Therefore, He is completely qualified and positioned to open the mystery of God's economy…Most Christians fail to realize that He is worthy to open the seals of the secret of God's economy. This aspect of the Lord's worthiness is universal and immeasurable. Of course, Christ is worthy of our praises; He is worthy even of our lives. Nevertheless, we must realize that, according to Revelation 5, Christ's worthiness is a matter of His being qualified to open the secret of God's economy. The universe is a mystery which the scientists cannot unravel. They simply do not know the meaning or the purpose of the universe because it is a secret kept from them. But Christ is worthy to open this secret, for He is worthy to open the seals of God's economy.

　　A scroll is a roll of parchment paper or other material. Because a scroll is rolled up, it is difficult to determine just how long it is. The scroll in Revelation 5 is eternally long. Only Christ is worthy to open this eternally-long scroll…We will need eternity to see all that is included in it. When we are in the New Jerusalem, we will still be reading the contents of the scroll. For eternity we will say, “Now I see something more.”…When we are in eternity, we may say, “The Lord's surprise [of the opening of the scroll] is eternal. Although we are now in eternity, we still cannot see the end.”

　　Christ has received from God the authority to administrate the entire universe (vv. 1, 6-7). Christ is the real Administrator of the heavens and all the nations on earth. In Matthew 28:18 the Lord told the disciples that all authority had been given to Him in heaven and on earth. In Revelation 5 Christ as the Lamb of God was standing in the midst of the four living creatures and the elders. The One who was sitting on the throne was holding a scroll sealed with seven seals. God was sitting on the throne holding this scroll, the schedule of His administration in the entire universe. This scroll is like a timetable of what will take place from the ascension of Christ to the New Jerusalem. The seven seals with which the scroll is sealed are actually its contents. These seven seals are the seven secrets of the universe, which are the mystery of God's economy. Christ as the Lion-Lamb is qualified to open the scroll, that is, to open the mystery of God's economy and to carry it out. This indicates that Christ is the One who has received the authority to administrate the entire universe. We all must worship Christ as the Administrator, as the One in the heavens administering all things for the fulfillment of God's economy. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4252-4253)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Revelation, msg. 2