In my last study of the book of Revelation I said this: Chapter 10 begins with another angel coming down out of heaven with a cloud and a rainbow about his head. The angel has a new scroll and it is open, unsealed in his hand. He calls out in a loud voice and seven thunders answer him but what the seven thunders say is kept secret. Then the angel makes a vow to the God of heaven.
Here we see this phrase again; God’s secret plan that He announced to His servants the prophets. Throughout history the prophets have written out the words of God. God’s secret is meant to be discovered by those who seek it. The scroll is not sealed; nor is it closed. This scroll is open, but the secret is not told here. We know the secret has to do with God’s promise to mankind because of the rainbow. The scroll was sweet in John’s mouth because the promise is sweet, but because the promise was rejected by mankind, it became bitter in John’s belly.
This scroll probably contains 1John 2:2: “He is the propitiation of our sins, but not ours alone, He is the propitiation of the sins of the entire world.” The word, propitiate, means to make right with God. When Jesus fulfilled the old covenant law, He fulfilled it for all mankind. This made all mankind right with God and Jesus gave His righteousness to all mankind as a free undeserved gift, unmerited favor, because of God’s love. All mankind wears this righteousness as a robe. All mankind had to do to make heaven its home was keep the three commandments of Jesus.
The promise, however, is not heaven. It is back in Genesis that God destroyed the world that then was with a flood because of mankind’s wickedness, but afterward God made a covenant with mankind and promised to never again destroy the world and placed His rainbow in the sky. There is an unknown here. The story of the flood is well known in Christian circles and outside those circles; the importance of the covenant or its terms is not. Mankind failed to realize the importance of the promise. When mankind realizes the mistake it has made, the sweetness of the promise will become bitterness and gall in its belly. As Jesus said, “There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
I was like most of the rest of humanity; I knew about the flood and the promise, I had even noted the covenant, but I failed to realize its importance. The phrase stated above, terms and conditions apply, is found in every contract and a covenant is a contract. God made a covenant with Adam. The term was forever. Our God is an eternal being; therefore the term of any contract He initiates is eternal. The condition was as long as Adam did not partake of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, He could remain in the Garden of Eden forever. The terms and conditions of the covenant did apply though, and the very day he partook of the fruit of that tree, His residency in the Garden ended.
Likewise, God made covenant with Abraham. Once again the term was eternity. The condition, according to Hebrews 11:10: “He looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God,” was an unbounded seeking out of a city God had founded. Abraham was promised the land of Canaan in perpetuity and because he never gave up on finding that city, his descendants, the Jews, has inherited that land and just a short while from now, Jesus, the descendant of Abraham, will establish the city of God on that piece of land.
Covenants matter. God made covenant again with the descendants of Abraham. The old covenant, as it came to be called, once again had terms and conditions. The conditions included the Ten Commandments but included a sacrificial system whereby an innocent animal’s innocence could be substituted for the guilt of a transgressor of the covenant. The Jew’s obedience of this covenant was so poor, the covenant dissolved. The Jews even lost their inheritance for a time but are now firmly planted back on their land.
Jesus was born at the end of the old covenant age, or natural life span of the covenant. He kept the old covenant perfectly, then died under the curse of the old covenant law, thus fulfilling it. Jesus then established a new covenant. The new covenant has terms and conditions, just like every covenant before it. The problem is, most Christians do not know the terms and conditions of the new covenant. Most Christians flounder in keeping the new covenant, because the conditions of the new covenant are muddied by mankind’s interpretation.
A contract is always between two persons or entities. The contract spells out the requirements of continuing to receive the service provided by the one who instigates the contract. The requirements of the contract are called the terms and conditions. When Jesus fulfilled the old covenant, the service the old covenant provided, which was perpetual righteousness, fell to all mankind. 1John 2:2 states it best: “He is the propitiation for our sins, but not ours alone, but also for the sins of the entire world.”
All mankind received a perpetual righteousness in the sight of God but Jesus also instituted a new covenant. The new covenant has conditions that must be met in order to remain in right standing with Jesus. Now, let me back up, according to Isaiah 53:6, “For the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all,” our Father God was Lord of the old covenant. When Jesus fulfilled the old covenant, the provision of the old covenant fell to all mankind.
However, when the Father God raised Jesus from the dead, He gave to Jesus the name above every other name, which was the name, Lord, then enhanced the authority of that name to King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Jesus said, “All authority has been given me in heaven and earth,” so not only did the Father give His authority to Jesus, all the authority, or power, of heaven and earth was given to Jesus. It is with this enhanced authority that Jesus established the new covenant. Thus, Jesus was able to go beyond His Father’s covenant in blessings. In order to receive the enhanced blessings of the new covenant, one must keep the conditions. Terms and conditions do apply.
It should be clear by now that all God’s covenants stand on the shoulders of the previous covenant. For instance, God made covenant with Abraham for a piece of ground that Abraham’s descendants would afterward inherit; a piece of ground that contained a city whose builder and maker was God. In order for the Jews to remain on that piece of land inhabited by God, it would require a perpetual robe of righteousness before God, which God’s subsequent covenant provided.
The service of the covenant Jesus established stands on the shoulders of His Father’s, making it possible for those who remain in right standing with the covenant to travel freely from God’s house in heaven to His residence on earth. So what are the terms and conditions of the covenant God made with Noah? If we look at the other covenants of God, the terms and conditions are listed with the issuance of the covenant.
In Genesis 2:26 we read: “And God said, Let us make man in our own image,” and in 2:15 “The Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden to dress it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat.” These are the terms and conditions of the covenant. You have the unspoken but understood promise of dwelling in the garden for all time under the condition of not eating of one tree. The word, die, means your existence will drastically change.
The terms and conditions are always plainly stated with each contract. In chapter 12 of Genesis we find the covenant between God and Abraham. It reads, “Now the Lord said, “You get out of your country, and from your kindred and from your father’s house, unto a land that I will show you.” God went on to spell out the services God would provide according to Abraham’s obedience.
The book of Exodus contains the whole of the old covenant law but it is too complex to go into here. Suffice it to say the terms and conditions are plainly stated. Early in Jesus’ ministry He stated His purpose for coming. “Think not that I came to destroy the law; I came not to destroy but to fulfill.” A fulfilled contract becomes null and void. Then Hebrews 8 reveals Jesus is the mediator of a new covenant. Where are the terms and conditions?
Again, early in Jesus’ ministry, He distinguished Himself from the Father by saying, “Whosoever believes in me shall not perish but have everlasting life.” The old covenant was established by the Father, as indicated by Isaiah 53:6, “The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” The old covenant didn’t promise everlasting life; belief in God didn’t provide it. This is a new promise for a new covenant. The new covenant could not be established until after the old covenant was fulfilled, which occurred when Jesus died on the cross.
In Acts 1 is where we find the conditions of the new covenant. Jesus gathers His followers about Him and gives them three commandments. He commands them to wait for a baptism with the Holy Spirit, preach a gospel of baptism, and disciple the converts. Now, the word, baptism, means, saturation. This saturation occurs as a gift of tongues pours out of the belly. It is as Jesus said in John 7:38, “He that believes on me, out of His belly will flow rivers of living water.” In order to keep Jesus’ first commandment, a level of saturation must be strived for daily.
So let’s go back. In Genesis 9:9, God said, “Behold I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you.” Noah and his sons were the only men on the face of the earth; all mankind descends from them. This covenant is more important than might first appear, as supported by Revelation 10. I am convinced the scroll the angel has in his hand is this covenant.
So Genesis 9:10 continues, “And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you: from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there anymore be a flood to destroy the earth.
And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it that I might remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.”
Can anybody tell me what the conditions of this covenant are? They are right here in this text. All God requires of mankind is that we look up at His bow and acknowledge that God is and that He is good. Of Abraham we are told, “And Abraham believed God and it was accounted unto him as righteousness.” So, in Abraham’s case, it was his faith that accredited righteousness to his account. The fact that Abraham heard God say, leave your family and travel to a land that I will show you, and believed, made Abraham right with God.
The covenant God made with Noah and his sons and every living creature on the earth was the first standard for righteousness God gave to mankind and all that was required of man was an acknowledgement of God and God’s goodness. Notice Hebrews 11:6: “Without faith it is impossible to please God, for he that comes to Him must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” So in Revelation 10, when the angel descends from heaven clothed with a cloud and a rainbow about his head, it is a huge indictment against mankind. The covenant God made with Noah was a covenant for perpetual generations. It is a covenant that is still in force today. It has not been fulfilled nor can it ever be. All it requires for right standing with God is to look at the rainbow and remember God.
Now, of course the old covenant had an infinitely more strict definition of righteousness for the Jews, and Jesus’ covenant requires obedience of the three commandments He issued but all God’s covenants require faith. When Abraham believed God, it propelled him to search out to find the city God spoke of. The Jews belief in God propelled them to keep the old covenant even though its laws were over bearing and onerous. Likewise, those who believe in Jesus will keep His commandments. The faith propels the obedience.
God did not issue any commandments in Genesis 9 however. He never listed any requirement for this covenant. It only stands to reason that mankind would admire the beauty of the rainbow and wonder at the one who created it. This wonder then would produce an admiration and respect for the creator, which would cause one to respect all of creation and the creator and this is all God required of man. The covenant was continually activated by God looking down from heaven to see the rainbow and mankind looking up in wonder.
So what is the significance of this covenant? Why are we told this story of the angel descending from heaven with this covenant written out on a scroll to hand to John? All God’s covenants seem to have unspoken parts. In the case of the Adamic covenant, God did not explicitly say that Adam would lose citizenship in the Garden of Eden if he failed to keep the covenant. It was implied. Likewise, the covenant God made with Abraham had implied parts that were unstated. Abraham was not promised the land of Canaan as an inheritance in the first rendering of the covenant and the significance of that piece of ground only came to light later on. That the land would become Abraham’s inheritance was implied by the words, “That I will show you.” What God shows you becomes yours.
The covenant God made with Noah and his sons had implications far beyond what was spoken on that occasion. God implied mankind, and all the animals on it, would have the earth as a home for perpetuity. It was an eternal inheritance, if man only looked up at God with admiration. In Revelation 10:5-6, the angel lifts his hand to heaven to “swear by Him that lives forever 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 that are therein, that there should be time no longer.” What is the implication?
If there is no time, all that have lived on the earth will live again. There is no past, no present, and no future. After the time of Jacob’s trouble, the earth will go on a thousand years and mankind will live on the earth. After this the earth will be burned with fire, which is a cleansing agent for God, and a new earth will come forth from the fire and mankind, from Adam on, will live on the earth in perpetuity. It is an everlasting covenant.
OK, so what is the secret plan God announced to His servants the prophets? In Genesis, God created mankind and put him in the Garden and gave him one commandment to keep. Adam failed. Abraham did much better with his commandment but the Jews interpreted their commandments. In Mark 7:6 Jesus said, “Well has Isaiah prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, this people honors me with their lips but their heart is far from me. In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men.” It turns out; the leaders of the Jews had interpreted the commandments of God and were keeping the interpretations and teaching the interpretation as the law of God.
Jesus is quoting Isaiah 29:13-14: “Wherefore the Lord said, forasmuch as this people draws near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: therefore, behold I will proceed to do a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of the wise men shall perish, and the understanding of the prudent men shall be hid.”
The indictment seems to be against the teachers. The teachers seem to have set themselves up as the wise but instead of teaching God’s Word, they teach interpretations of God’s word. The Jews had taken the fifth commandment, to honor father and mother, and reasoned that if a man offers his life to God as a living sacrifice, it is a greater act of honor than anything they could do for father or mother. Therefore, those who offer their life to God as living sacrifices are exempt from keeping the commandment. That is not the only commandment they had done this to.
The new covenant is no different. The commandments Jesus issued the Church were interpreted early on and it is the interpretation that is taught today and kept by the masses of Christianity. Our great and learned teachers reason that since the apostles kept the first commandment so perfectly, their perfect obedience negates the need for anyone else to obey. The average person doesn’t know the difference. They look at the learned individual and say, he knows the scripture better than I, surely his wisdom is correct, and soon everyone is following the interpretation and nobody is following God.
“Forasmuch as this people draws near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me.” Most Christians believe they are serving God. They draw near God behaviorally and verbally honor Him but in truth, they are far away, serving another master. They are deceived. The secret plan of God, announced to his prophets, seems to be an exposure of this hypocrisy. During the tribulation period, especially during the second half, God will expose the truth of the Church, that Satan founded the modern organization called church.
This takes us back to Romans 9:33: “Behold I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense: whosoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” The stumbling stone and rock of offense is the commandment Jesus issued in Acts 1. The Church worldwide is offended by the commandment and though they honor the Lord with their mouth, they dishonor him by refusing to believe they are responsible for obedience. “Forasmuch as this people draws near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me.”
Most Christians today honor the Christ, believe in the Christ who died on the cross to fulfill the old covenant law and redeem mankind from its curse, but stumble over the Lord because He issued commandments. Moreover, He issued those commandments with a higher and greater authority than those issued by the Father under the old covenant.
In Acts 1, Jesus reveals the baptism with the Holy Spirit is the Father’s gift to the Church. It is the Father who raised Jesus to the position He has now, far above all principalities and powers, and gave Him a name above every other name. The truth is, the Father raised Jesus above Himself, way above. So when Jesus issues a commandment with that power and authority, of course mankind stumbles over it and is offended by it. This makes all mankind sinners in spite of the great and incredible grace of God. So God takes all mankind down into the valley to judge them there.
The people of the Church are judged first. In Revelation 6, it is the sealed scroll that is opened. This scroll contains the new covenant. In chapter 10 we are halfway through the tribulation period and the scroll containing the covenant of Noah is brought forth. The new covenant pertains to Christians; the covenant of Noah pertains to the world.
Remember Hebrews 6:1, “Without faith it is impossible to please God, for he that comes to Him must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” This was the requirement of the covenant God made with Noah and it is the requirement of the new covenant. Christians are failing to see Jesus as Lord, failing to believe that He is, and thus having authority to issue commandments and that keeping those commandments have rewards.