The lesson covered the figurative meanings of the “seal” representing God’s word of truth, and the “mark” representing Satan’s lies and falsehoods mentioned in Revelation. At the first coming, Jesus was God’s “seal” spreading God’s truth, and those accepting his words were sealed by God. At the second coming, someone guided by God will testify to the fulfillment of prophecies, sealing the 144,000 and a great multitude who accept this testimony. In contrast, the beast will spread Satan’s lies, and those accepting those lies will receive the deceptive “mark of the beast.” The number 666 ties back to Solomon being led astray, just as the mark leads people away from God’s truth. The main point is understanding the spiritual significance of the seal versus the mark in the end times, and being sealed by accepting fulfilled prophecies rather than being deceived by lies.

 

Study Guide SCJ Bible Study

Secrets of Heaven: Figurative Seal (Mark)

My favorite days of the week are Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Why? Because I have the opportunity to be filled. The best way to learn? The best way to feel fulfilled is to pour into someone else. And I have the opportunity to pour into 80 plus people three times a week.

 

This is the best, the most refreshing time. So, I pray that we all also feel refreshed after each lesson. And I pray that we will definitely feel refreshed after today’s lesson. Today’s lesson is going to be like, whoa.

 

At the end of today’s lesson, we will all understand what God’s will is for each of our lives. What does God desire of us? It will be very clear. It will no longer be vague. Very clear.

Woe to those who call good evil and evil good. A person who does this lacks the ability to discern. They don’t know what is truly good or evil. So, how do they operate? Verse 21 says, “Who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.” One who is wise in their own eyes will not be able to know what is truly good or evil. For they will call the wrong things the wrong things. If you think about people who embody this, you should be thinking about people like the Israelites at the first coming, the Pharisees, and the Sadducees. They were very wise in their own eyes, but when Jesus, who was good, came, they called him evil. They slandered him as demon-possessed and a Samaritan. We want to be those who make sure that we call good, good, and evil, evil, but that means we have to be able to discern.

 

Let us keep that in mind. We’ll always talk about this, right? It’s a basic principle. We’ve been discussing it since the very beginning. But it matters. It’s so important, especially in our time, because there are many things around us that claim to be the truth. It’s hard to know unless we can discern.

Figurative Seal (Mark)

One thing to understand about the seal and the mark is that the seal is good, and the mark is bad. Now, when we say “seal” here, English is a bit figurative, right? The same word can represent multiple things. We are not talking about a seal that binds or closes, like a sealed word. What we’re actually discussing is a seal like a stamp, a certification. That’s the kind of seal we’re referring to today. So, we’ll really dive into this content.

 

Again, we’re not talking about something that binds or closes like a sealed word. That’s not what we mean. We mean a stamp, something that certifies. A certification stamp. That kind of seal. So, what do we think the figurative seal represents?

And as you’re thinking about the seal, you should also be considering the mark. What is the mark? What does it represent? Okay, we’ll talk about that in just a moment. We’ll discuss the seal first.

 

All right, let’s read our hope for today:

“Let’s be sealed at the second coming and be sure to not receive the mark of the beast.”

So, we want to be sealed, and we don’t want the mark. Right, very clear.

That’s why we looked at Isaiah 5:20-21. Good, evil; evil, good. We must be able to discern.

It’s very important. If we’re not super clear about what the seal is and what the mark of the beast is, how can we know for sure if we have one or the other? That’s why we’re studying. Glory to God that you’re here.

Main Reference

Let’s all draw the diagram I’m drawing here. We’ll take just a moment to do that. Just to give us a little bit of a visual as to what’s going on in this prophecy.

 

So, we see here at the beginning of Revelation 7 something very important that will continue to harp on. What does it say? What is the third word in verse 1? So, it might be a different word, but what does it say at the beginning of the verse? After this, what? “I”. After this, “I saw”. Who is the “I” here? Whose perspective is it from?

 

It’s from John’s perspective. So, John is seeing this. So, John says, “I saw the 4 angels standing at the 4 corners of the earth.” We’ll get to that content very soon. Then, verse 2.

 

“I saw another angel.” So, different than the first 4. “I saw another angel coming from the east, having the seal of the living God in his hand.” And what does he do with that seal?

 

He takes that seal and puts the seal on the foreheads of the servants of God. And then it numbers the number of servants. And it totals 144,000 servants.

 

We know that there are some who talk about how these may be the only ones saved, but that is incorrect, right? We’ve talked about that, just read verses 9 and 14 to know that there’s also a great multitude.

 

But these people have a special job to do when Revelation is fulfilled. And we’ll talk about that. There’s a reason why God is the one that mentioned this first. Not a denomination. It’s in the Bible.

 

So what matters, we need to know about it. Amen. So, the seal of the living God is put on the foreheads of the servants of God. So what does it mean? What are they supposed to do? And what does that mean?

 

So, we’ll talk about that now. So we’ll look at the physical characteristics of a seal so that we can really make sense of what is going on here.

1. Physical Characteristics of a Seal

1. A seal is an object that resembles a stamp, usually. Many cultures use seals as signatures. For instance, in Asian cultures like Japan, Korea, or China, instead of signing their names or initials with a pen, people carry a seal with them and some ink. This seal serves as an official document or signature, confirming ownership or approval, or even certification that something is approved.

 

2. A seal is often carved out of wood or stone, giving it a sense of permanence for the image or signature engraved on it. When a seal is used, it stamps a mark or seal on the object. For example, farmers would typically brand their cows to indicate ownership, although this practice may not be as common nowadays. The branding process is painful for the cow, but it certifies that the cow belongs to the farmer.

 

Seals confirm ownership, approval, or certification. So, in Revelation 7, the sealing of people can be seen as a positive thing, where they are being certified or confirmed by heaven to do something specific or special.

2. Figurative (True) Meaning of a Seal

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. So, God is equating Himself to His Word. And when you equate yourself to something, you can also be called by that thing to which you equate yourself.

 

I am equated to the Mason family, or that is the family to which I belong; that is my last name. So, I’m equated to that name; that is how I’m called.

 

It is actually accurate to call God “The Word.” That is His name, or one of His names. He has many names, but that is His name, the Word, because He is the Word. The Word comes from within; it is this very essence that goes out and operates in the world.

 

That’s why in Isaiah 55:11, it says, “My word does not go out and return to me without doing the purpose for which I have sent it.” Right? So when God speaks, His words will then become reality. Amen.

 

So, God’s name and His Word are one and the same. When someone is signing something, they’re signing their name as their certification of approval or ownership.

 

So, what is the seal that God wants to put on people’s foreheads? The seal that God wants to put on people’s foreheads is His Word. Why? When God looks at someone and He sees His Word in them, He knows they belong to Him. But if God looks at someone and He does not see His Word, that one does not belong to Him.

 

This is partly why Jesus said in John 14…

Jesus said, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teachings. And my Father and I will come to him and make our home with him.” Why? Because they have engraved my word, my commands, my teachings in their hearts, and they live by those words.

 

Does this make sense? So, God and Jesus consider their words as very important. If we want to be considered certified, approved, and owned by God, we need His word within us.

 

This is very important, like His seed, right? God gives His seed, which is the word, and the seed is planted in the heart. That seed grows into a big tree and bears fruit.

 

Or we can even think about it like reproduction. A father gives a seed to the mother. The mother gives birth to a child. That child will also then contain the seed of the Father within them. The very blood that runs through their veins is consistent with that.

 

The logic is the same. What does God want us to see? What does God want to see in us? His word. So, how does that take place?

We read this passage a few times, but it should take on a whole new meaning for us. Today, in John chapter 3, this is actually John the Baptist speaking. He’s giving his testimony about Jesus. And he said this: “The one who is from above is above all,” and what kind of words does the one who was from above speak?

 

He speaks the truth. He speaks the words from above, for that is where he has come from. And he speaks not only the word from above but he also speaks what he has seen and heard. So, what does it mean when someone speaks what they have seen and heard? What word do you use for that?

 

When someone sees and hears something, they speak a testimony. And when they speak a testimony, people are supposed to hear that testimony, and there are two ways they can react to what they hear. Either the person hears the testimony and says, “Oh, amen,” and accepts it, or they hear the testimony and reject it.

 

That’s it. So, what is the difference between the person who hears and accepts, saying “Oh, wow,” and the person who says, “That doesn’t sound like what I’ve always thought,” and rejects it? Well, what does it say about the person who accepts? Let’s read verse 32 once again.

 

It says he testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony, except a few out of an entire country. That’s basically no one. The one who has accepted has certified that God is truthful. For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God. For God gives the Spirit without limit. So there are two kinds of people who hear the words from above.

 

There are those who hear and accept. These people who hear and accept will be sealed, certified. So those who hear and accept will be sealed. Those who hear and reject will not be sealed.

 

So, Jesus is the one who is sealing, and those who hear and accept are being sealed. Are we understanding? Those who hear are being sealed, and the one who is speaking is the sealer.

 

So that’s why it says in verse 33, “The one who has accepted has certified that God is truthful.” So to really break this down very clearly: to seal means to testify, to testify what was seen and heard, to testify the word.

 

To be sealed means to hear and accept. That person then becomes sealed with that word. And the purpose of this is to certify who belongs to God and who does not, to confirm God’s people, his seed, those that belong to him, to confirm God’s people who truly belong to God and who do not.

 

Okay, so we will now talk about the seal at the first coming and the second coming.

3. Work of Sealing at the First Coming

Old Testament Prophecy

On that day, which means we are reading a prophecy, so we should be thinking in parable language. Let’s understand this parable language a little bit more.

 

“On that day, declares the Lord Almighty, I will take you, my servant, Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel,” declares the Lord, “and I will make you like my signet ring.”

 

What’s a signet ring? It’s basically a seal that can be worn as a ring. This was often worn by kings, royalty, and monarchy. So they would have their seal on them, and then they would put it in ink and stamp a document. Their ability to signify or certify something was always with them.

 

So God is saying through the prophet Haggai that He will make a person like His seal, representing authority and fulfilment of prophecy.

 

To understand how this prophecy was fulfilled, we’ll now turn to the book of John once more.

First Coming Fulfillment

God has placed His seal of approval on Him, confirming His authority. So, what was the seal that God gave to Jesus as a confirmation?

So, what did Jesus say here? Something he often said, like in John 14, “For I gave them the words that you gave to me.” And they accepted them. So, they were sealed. Jesus said, “I gave them the words you gave me, and they accepted them.”

 

To his disciples, this is who Jesus was praying for in John 17, those who received and accepted the words from above, spoken through Jesus. So, Jesus became God’s Seal at the time of the first coming. And his job was to seal others. And those who accepted that became sealed as well, certified as those that belonged to God, and that God can use.

 

So, what about the second coming? The second coming is actually very similar. We read it in Revelation 7. The same process must take place in our time.

4. Work of Sealing at the Second Coming

At the time of the second coming, just like during the first coming, there must also be the work of sealing. 

 

During the first coming, people needed to hear the testimony about how God’s words had been fulfilled. This person appeared according to the prophecy: John the Baptist represents Elijah; the Pharisees are who Isaiah was talking about when he referred to the blind. “I am the Messiah. I am the one born to a virgin. I began my ministry in Galilee. I had to die on the cross for the atonement of sins.” Like that, Jesus had to explain these things that had been fulfilled.

 

The same thing must happen at the time of the second coming.

 

So, as mentioned in Revelation 7:2-3, the angel is holding the seal of the living God.

Until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God. So, how is this carried out? As we’ve read in other places in the book of Revelation, there is a specific process for which the prophecy must be fulfilled. There must be betrayal, there must be destruction, but then there must be the work of salvation, the work of the day of the Lord. Like 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3, which you’ve read many times, and we’ll read it many more times. So, there must be betrayal, there must be destruction, and there must be salvation. We’re really focusing today on the work of salvation.

 

How does that take place? First, the word is sealed in God’s right hand, as mentioned in Revelation 5:1-3. Then, it is given to Jesus. The sealed book is opened. That sealed book is given to the angel, who then gives it to John. Now, we know that the book of Revelation is told through the perspective of Apostle John, who saw these things and recorded it in Scripture. He wrote and put ink to paper for the book of Revelation. 

 

However, Apostle John is no longer around. So, at the time of fulfillment, a new John must be the one who eats the open scroll, and then his job is to testify, prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings. This is just a quick review of what we’ve read before, but please be familiar with this process.

 

As stated in Revelation 10:8-11, he is given that word, and then he must eat it and then testify to many peoples, nations, languages, and kings. And when he testifies that word to them, their job is to hear it and come out and come to Mount Zion where the Lamb is.

In Revelation 7, we see the sealing of the 144,000. And in Revelation 14, where are those 144,000 now? They are on Mount Zion. This is the place for which they were sealed, standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion. They hear the testimony of what has been fulfilled, and they come out. They go to Mount Zion, and they are sealed. So, God’s word of fulfillment is put on their hearts and minds.

 

However, it’s not just them. There are others who must go through this process too, like those who are called the great multitude in Revelation 7:9-14. John also sees a great multitude that no one can count, from every tribe, people, language, and nation. They too will gather on Mount Zion.

 

What’s interesting about these 144,000 is that they come from a specific location, which is quite intriguing. If we go back to Revelation 7…

We move on to examine the rest of the chapter. It mentions 12,000 individuals from each of the 12 tribes. It names the sons of Jacob: 12,000 from this tribe, 12,000 from that tribe, totaling 144,000. We will study this in greater detail in the coming days.

 

However, it is crucial to understand that almost all of Revelation is expressed in figurative language because it represents prophecy. Keep this in mind. We often tend to interpret things literally when reading the Bible, but the nature of the content is figurative.

 

Are we understanding this concept?

 

The one who receives the testimony and is instructed to consume it becomes the seal. Thus, the seal of the living God is upon John, who must then seal others with the testimony he had received. In every chapter of Revelation, we encounter phrases like “I saw,” “I heard,” “It was shown to me.” Let us examine how John summarizes this. This is a very important passage.

I, John, the one who heard and saw these things, what was it that he saw and heard? Well, this is mentioned in the last chapter of Revelation. So he’s talking about the events from Revelation 1 to Revelation 22. I am the one who heard and saw all these things.

 

Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about himself? Or someone else? As mentioned in Acts 8:34.

 

So there must be one who appears at the time of the second coming, who will see and hear the events of Revelation, but not in their prophetic, parable state like Apostle John saw. Instead of seeing monsters, he will see people. Instead of seeing a prostitute, he will see a person.

 

Instead of seeing a desert, he will see a place. Instead of seeing a mountain, he will see a gathering place of believers like that.

 

And then he’ll be able to say, ‘This is what I saw. This is what I heard. These are the ones who betrayed. These are the ones who destroyed. These are the ones who do the work of salvation. These are their names. These are their locations.’ That’s the testimony that will seal people.

 

But someone who becomes sealed doesn’t just sit there and say, ‘Hey, look,’ right?

 

They don’t; that’s not what they do. What is their job after receiving the seal? To do what? To turn around and seal someone else, like the disciples. The disciples received the seal from Jesus.

 

And then Jesus told them, ‘Go out and make disciples of many nations.’ And so they went and sealed others.

 

Old Testament prophecy has been fulfilled, and this is what Christ promised to do. Wait patiently like that. That’s what it meant to seal others.

 

So the 144,000, at the time of the second coming, will also have a very important job to do. They will be sealed, and then they too will go around the world and tell people what has been fulfilled.

 

And we’ll talk about this, for it’s very interesting. So now that you’re hearing this, what should you be thinking?

 

‘God, why have you chosen now to tell me about this? What do you want from me? Hmm. What is God’s will for my life? Not just for me to hear these words as head knowledge and go, “Wow, that was a nice meal.”‘

 

But to say, ‘Oh, God is equipping me. God is equipping me to do something. God wants me or thinks that I could be part. Maybe I could be part of the number.’

 

Maybe that’s what God wants for my life. Maybe this is why God picked this perfect time in my life to study. Now was the right time for me to hear this word. God is never late. He is always on time.

 

Which is why when you say, ‘Oh, I gotta miss class, I got this thing come up,’ or like, ‘No, because it’s not going to get easier. Oh, maybe I’ll stop now and do it later.’ And then you’re like, ‘It’s busier and busier.’

 

God picked this time for a reason. Amen. Okay, now that’s the seal. We need to talk about the mark.

5. Satan’s Mark

I bet that’s what you’ve been waiting for – what is that mark of the beast? I hear a thousand different things on the news. This person says it’s this, that person says it’s that. I’m scared to get this vaccine. I don’t want to get this, right?

 

So many different interpretations. But what should we be thinking about? Okay, now I know what God’s seal is. It’s His word of truth. And Satan likes to take what is God’s and corrupt it.

 

So, what should we be thinking about Satan’s mark? Should we be thinking about it as a physical thing that some person makes? No, no. It’ll be the opposite of what God gives. Are you understanding? Are you picking up the signals that I’m putting down? Right? So, we should not be scared of the news. You won’t find fulfillment on the news. Quit worrying about those things.

We see here that anyone who receives the mark of the beast will no longer be able to buy and sell figuratively. We’ve talked about what figurative buying represents, and we’ve talked about figurative selling, like when we discussed treasure, in the figurative wine lesson.

 

 This is why we can’t forget about the parables we’ve studied so far. What does it really mean to buy and sell figuratively? What does it mean to buy? It means to listen. What does it mean to sell? To speak. Isaiah 55 says, “Come buy.”

 

Buy without cost. And then God says, “What? Come and listen to me,” Isaiah 55:1-3.

 

It’s not physical, everyone. It’s spiritual. Stop looking at the news. “Come, buy, and eat” means come and listen. So, the one who oversees the mark of the beast will be able to continue listening and speaking, but not God’s word of truth, but lies.

 

The mark of the beast represents Satan’s lies. Lies. Because lies are Satan’s native language. God is compared to the Word, while John 8:44 compares Satan to a liar and the father of lies.

 

All he speaks are lies. So, is it possible to already have the mark? Yes, it is possible to already have the mark.

Scrub, scrub, scrub. Wash with the word of truth like that. It’s possible you already have it.

 

I don’t want to be someone with Satan’s lies because the end is not good. The end for someone who has Satan’s mark is hell, which we definitely do not want. Remember, Revelation 14:9-11.

 

That is not what we want. We want instead to be those who have God’s seal and are united with heaven. So please read these verses, Revelation 20:4-5. We don’t have time to read them tonight because we still need to talk about the number.

 

But please read these passages. Heaven vs. Hell. Okay, so what does the number 666 mean, and we’ll close with this? It’s called the number 666, man’s number.

Did you pick that up? Man’s number. There was a reason for this, why it is called man’s number.

It’s supposed to remind us of a previous time when this number was mentioned. Who here knew that the number 666 appeared in another place in the Bible?

It appeared somewhere else in the Bible.

We see here that Solomon received 666 talents. Remember what talents represent, right? Talents are measures of gold, not skills or abilities, but measures of gold, treasure.

 

So, if we draw the nation of Israel here, this line represents the sea. Can everyone see this right here? Okay, so this is Israel. That means Solomon regularly received treasure from what nations? What kind of nations was he receiving treasure from? Arabia, merchants, traders, Gentile nations. He regularly received treasure from Gentile nations, those who did not belong to God.

 

And what happens when one receives a sufficient amount of treasure from those who do not belong to God? It corrupts them. What happened in the next chapter? 1 Kings 11, disaster strikes. Chapter 11. You don’t have time to read it all tonight, but this is something we will revisit many times.

 

I’ll summarize. Solomon had many wives from Gentile nations, many, 700. And 300 concubines, a lot. And over time, those women turned his heart away from God. And he built idols to those gods in Israel. This angered God very greatly. God was angered to such a point that he divided the nation and allowed it to be destroyed for 70 years by Babylon. That was the start of the era of Babylon.

 

So, when we understand this history, we should be thinking in Revelation, oh, someone who is used to receiving much falsehood and makes others receive that same falsehood. It’s like bad marking, lies, lies, lies. From this place, from that place, it’s done spiritually. It’s just this gentle giving of falsehood to many people. And the lies spread like that.

 

We don’t want that. So we need to know and avoid the lies that appear at the second coming. That’s the mark. Amen. Does that make sense, everyone? So if you want to get the vaccine, go get the vaccine. It’s fine; it’s not the mark. Right? So don’t get confused by these things that people throw on the internet. It doesn’t make sense because it doesn’t follow the logic of the Bible.

Memorization

Let’s Us Discern