The Means of Restoration - he Seal of the Living God and the Mark of the Beast

The Seal of the Living God

and the

Mark of the Beast

By

C. AND J. LEE

The Means of Restoration - Sum's Up Restoration

It is shown by the prefigure that the means of restoration are the sanctuary and the host. When Joshua led the prefiguring Israel into the promised land, it was the sanctuary and the host which constituted the means of restoration. By means of these he conquered the enemies and took over the possession. These shadows indicate what is before us now when the promises are to be received.

The angel, who revealed the future to Daniel, showed him that the sanctuary and the host, trampled down by the Gentiles, were to appear again at the time of the restoration.

It was to be 2300 years from the time the kingly decree was issued, that the Jews were to leave Babylon in order to return and rebuild the temple and the walls in Jerusalem; to these 2300 years were added still an extra period of seventy years, which was to be a preparatory time for the sanctuary and the host.

This prophetically measured off time terminated in the year 1914 — the year when the World War broke out. We believe that that World War constituted a breaking down instrument through which a way will be opened for Christ's sanctuary and host to come on the stage. If we then read in the prophecies what the Lord is going to do at the time of restoration, we find that the sanctuary and the host are to be called forth and made to fill the object God has foretold. For instance, if we read in Isa. 13:1 13 we find there a description of what the result will be when the sanctuary and the host set out to receive the promise. If we should happen to have a history about Joshua's invasion of Canaan by one of that country's inhabitants, it would undoubtedly accord with the following prophetic utterance:

"The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see. Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain, exalt the voice unto them, shake the hand, that they may go into the gates of the nobles. I have commanded my sanctified ones (sanctuary) , I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger, even them that rejoice in my highness. The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of a great people; a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together: the LORD of hosts mustereth the host of the battle. They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, even the LoRD, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land. Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man's heart shall melt: And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames. Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir. Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger." (Isa. 13:1 13.)

The sanctuary, which, according to Daniel 8th and 9th chapters, is to be restored and anointed at the end of the time prophetically measured off for its suppression, is indicative of the redemption from Babylon's oppressive bands by the host believing in the promises. The apostolic congregation, while assembled in Jerusalem, exemplified this redemption, so also did the advent movement during the period of 1840-1844. But the bands of the world and of the church organizations have again suppressed the people of the promises and are holding them in captivity.

The anointing of the most holy has reference to the sealed host, who under the control of the prophetic truths are anointed as kings and priests of the new kingdom in order that they might reign with Christ during the thousand years.

The call of both the sanctuary and the host concerns the exodus from the christened Babylon and belongs to the great day of the Lord, the very one whose morning is now breaking in. The receipt of the governmental promise is placed before this sanctuary and host, and the actual Joshua, whom the Jews crucified, and whose sanctuary and host the Romans trampled down, will lead these His hosts onward to the governmental goal.

We said that the World War opens the way for the powers of restoration to come forth. The World War does not terminate with what is going on at present, there will be a continuation of devastating powers, which as yet are unthinkable. First, the .division of the conquered territories will call forth disputes and fights, and the troops returning from the war now (1914-1918) in progress, destitute and dissatisfied with all and everything, will create incredible misery. An American newspaperman foresees this and has the following to say concerning it:

"There will be disturbances in all countries. Millions of men will return to their homes completely changed. Their sufferings and privations will have given them a different ambition than the one we in general are familiar with; other thoughts and other manners. They will not have the same respect for human lives, they have seen death at close quarters, they have marched over the corpses of their friends."

And we can imagine what effect the terrible wars of the so-called Christians against one another will have on the non-Christians. They will rise up against everyone called Christian in order to exterminate them from their territories. The editor of the American paper, The Navy, expresses himself as follows concerning it:

"There will come a war between the different races." And he reminds of the fact that people, despite religion, literature and all cultural movements still have their brutal instincts well in order. "And when at last the cultured and over-refined Europe breaks out in a savage war, what might we then not expect from the black, brown and yellow millions, when they learn to use the white people's weapons?"

The predetermined war acts of the Mohammedans are described in Rev. 9th chapter. They will appear as a result of Constantinople's fall.

In Rev. 7th chapter we read about the sealing and those to be sealed. The first part of the chapter shows that it is during the time of the war storms the sealing act is carried out. The previous chapter describes the results of the breaking of the seals, and we understand that those who are to be sealed will be brought forth by the circumstances arising from the breaking of the seals, namely, because of the world war and revolutions following upon it, also the great famine and the opposition of the beast to the establishment of Christ's kingdom on the earth. They have to meet with all of this on their way onward to the goal. The journey of Abraham to Mount Moriah and the road of Christ through the cross to the resurrection foreshadowed this road.

The sealing act is described as follows:

"And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east (or, the sun rising) , having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel." (Rev. 7:1 4.)

That this messenger appears at the rising of the sun is indicative of the great day of the Lord. The aurora of this day is signified by the going out of the red horse at the time the second seal is being broken. The world war precedes the sunrise, and at that time the sealing is imminent.

That the winds of the earth, the war winds, are held back while the sealing act is in progress, shows that the war storm is raging during the time of the preparation for the sealing. But just then, when the hour for the sealing act arrives, the war winds are pressed back and, as a result, God's work will press onward to its destination.

John says that this angel, who ascends from the rising sun, has the seal of the living God.

Many have already claimed to be in possession of this seal, and with their methods of sealing they have gone ahead of the Lord's work. The Mormons imagine themselves to belong to the sealed host, they therefore call themselves "The Latter Day Saints." "The Holy Rollers," a sect flourishing in U. S. A., think they are sealed. A professor at a university in the state of Iowa, undertook to burn with acid the mark of the seal on his followers' foreheads. The S. D. Adventists have, ever since their beginning, carried on a propaganda with the sealing work, making their people believe that the sabbath, the seventh day, constitutes the sealing mark, and if keeping this, then one is sealed.

All these and others who have busied and are busying themselves with the sealing have gone ahead of the time God has pointed out for the sealing to take place. Christ says that, "All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers" (Jhn 10:8) , and this may have an application even here. It is the word of prophecy that is to decide when the time is at hand for the sealing work, also who the ones are to be sealed and under what circumstances the sealing is to be carried out.

We have shown already that it is at the time of the receipt of the promises the sealing act is in progress, and that it is the sealed host that is to take over the possession embraced by the promise. As to the S. D. Adventists, they have no interest at all in the promise of sealing and the receipt of the possession it comprises, for according to Mrs. White's doctrine they go up yonder to heaven at the time God's people struggle to receive the promise, and they allow that the possession of the promise be given to Satan still for another thousand years. And then they are made to believe, and this contrary to Scripture, that the inheritance is not of the law, and that it cannot be received under the law, but despite this they claim that by observing the law they will become sealed by means of it.

The quoted testimony shows clearly that it is the seed of Abraham, the twelve tribes of Jacob, who are subject to the sealing act. These tribes, who are also mentioned by their respective names, must in preparation to this act be loosened from the Babylonian power. The ten tribes, or the house of Israel, due to the fact that they have lost their nationality, are known only as a working class, which is loosened by means of the bread question from the nations under which it has served. The house of Judah, or the two tribes, who were still in Palestine at the first coming of Christ, are known, but they must also become severed from the Babylonian power before the sealing can be applied on them.

The time for the sealing to begin is described in the 10th chapter of Revelation. And if we pay close attention to the context, we shall also find that the signet of the sealing is mentioned there. It reads as follows:

"And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire: And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth, And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices. And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not. And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven, And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer."

This messenger is undoubtedly the same one John describes in the 7th chapter, for that one is also in possession of the seal of the living God. He holds the sealed book open in his hand. The morning sun of the great day has then ascended so high that his face as a result thereof is radiant as the sun. By this is signified that the truth belonging to the great morning work goes forth in a radiance comparable to that of the sun.

While he proclaims his message, the war is in progress around him, and this is signified by "the seven thunders" — the defensive weapon of the seven-headed Babylonian power. The seven successive universal governmental heads have led the people on this murderous martial road and now when God presses forth the Messianic kingdom, the nations are engaged in crushing and butchering one another. Finally they will turn their weapons directly against God's work.

The messenger, who has the seal of the living God, is himself, according to our opinion, the personal signet ring, who in the leading of God's work out of Babylon leaves his impressions on the believing host through doctrine and example. His own personal position relative to the mark of the beast affects those who are to be sealed, like the impression of a signet ring on warm wax. This appears also in the prophecy concerning Zerubbabel. The name means a cherub in Babel and the prefigure was carried out by Zerubbabel, who led the Jews out of the Babylonian captivity. The prophecy is as follows:

"Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth; And I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the heathen; and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts." (Hag. 2:21 23.)

John says that the messenger with the open sealing-book places one foot on the sea and the other on the earth, that is, he controls or receives power over both sea and land. This reminds one of Joshua, when he crossed over Jordan and over into the promised land. Accompanied by his people he marched forward into the land of promise. The flourishing time of the heathen was then at an end, for then, prefiguratively, the promise was to be redeemed to the seed of Abraham.

This messenger raises his hand toward heaven and swears "by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer." And what does this mean? That the governmental promise is to be realized. When God swore by Himself concerning the same thing, He had none higher to swear by, but this messenger swears by the ever-living Creator of both heaven and earth, that the time of the Gentiles had come to an end. What occasions the messenger with the little open judgment book to swear thus? He has the seal of the living God in his hand, and this seal is the prophetic word of promise, which is now to be realized.

In the development of God's wonderful plan, all essential events impelled by God, appear in pairs, shadow and reality. This also concerning the seed of promise. God swore first at the mount of revelation, that Abraham and his seed were to possess the gate of their enemies. The act of this confirmation is repeated in the messenger with the open judgment book, which had first been in the hand of the world judge. (See Rev. 5:1.) When the messenger sent by the Almighty as His judgment ambassador sees and experiences that the time has arrived for the redemption of the promise, he makes this known by raising his hand to heaven and affirming that now is the promise to be realized which God confirmed with an oath. This constitutes the sign for the beginning of the sealing act.

The prophetic book sealed with seven seals will be opened at the same time, and in the proportion the seals are opened the signs of the time increase, and this heralds the fact that the day of Jehovah is near at hand, when He is to redeem His dispersed people and punish the nations for their injustices.

The breaking of the first seal indicates that the power of light, the prophetic enlightenment, goes out into the world to break a way through the power of darkness. This wave of light is signified by a white horse, whose rider is armed with a bow, namely, a power to break through and clear the way for the masses who are to be assembled before the throne of God and of the Lamb.

The breaking of the second seal calls forth the bloody sword, the world war with its bloody scenes, and is signified by a red horse, whose rider had a great sword. Peace is taken away from the earth and people begin to kill one another. Through this the dispersed multitudes of Israel are confronted by the Red Sea, as was the prefigurative Israel under the guidance of Moses. They have to go through this sea in order to get to the wilderness. And the wilderness comes as a result of the world war and revolutions which follow.

Then famine, pestilence and death follow, signified by the black and the pale horse. All this breaks a way for the host to be sealed so that they can reach the goal lying ahead of them.

The seals of the judgment book are broken to the messenger and he proclaims the contents of the book, the result being that the multitudes going out of Babylon come under the seals of the book, like the prophecy previously had been under them, and in the measure their mind of understanding is able to grasp and understand the meaning of the governmental promises, they come under the seal. At last they have the names of the Lamb and His Father impressed so deeply on their foreheads — their intellect —that they are ineffaceable. Then they are sealed with the seal of the living God and they risk their lives and all in order to obtain the governmental promise.