Search the Scriptures by F. D. Starr

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Jun 26, 1907

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 33, No. 26.

Search the Scriptures

By F. D. Starr

By F. D. Starr

Revelation.

WE now come to consider the last book of the Bible. While a rich blessing attends the study of any portion of the sacred Scriptures, yet of no other of the sixty-six books of which the Bible is composed, is a more earnest statement made concerning the reading and hearing of the same.

Notice how emphatic is the declaration:

“Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein; for the time is at hand.”

Why should there, then, be any hesitation about searching this part of the Holy Scriptures? Is it because the book is said to be full of secret mysteries that no one can understand? If so, let us look for a moment at the name that is given to this book.

The opening statement of the book tells us that this is the “Revelation of Jesus Christ.” A revelation is something revealed. The difference between this and one of the secrets of the Lord is distinctly shown in Deut. 29:29.

“The secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

If the book of Revelation were not to be studied by us, it would have had some such title as The Secrets of the Almighty, instead of being called the Revelation of Jesus Christ. But since it is a revelation, it does not belong to the secret things which God has reserved to Himself.

The name in the original Greek is still more significant. That name is the Apocalypse, and signifies the removal of the veil, the unveiling. So in this book is contained the information that unveils the future.

Sometimes it is asserted that this is a sealed book, but the Lord foreknew that this excuse would be offered, so He forestalled this objection by the instruction given in the very close of the book:

“And He saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand.” Rev. 22:10.

Of no other book in the Bible has Inspiration taken the precaution to tell us that it was not sealed, and perhaps none of the other books is so frequently called a sealed book.

But what are the ideas of man in opposition to God?

It was only four years before the close of the first century of the Christian era that John had this vision, being then nearly one hundred years old, and banished to the isle of Patmos. This island is in the Grecian Archipelago, only about seventy-five miles from Ephesus, where John made his home in his old age. This church Inspiration leads him to first mention in his message to the seven churches. None of the seven were very far away, Pergamos, the most distant, being only about one hundred and fifty miles from the scene of the prophet’s exile.

While these messages are addressed to this cluster of churches in Asia Minor, we are not to suppose they are applicable to those congregations alone, any more than Peter’s epistle should be limited in its application to Pontus, Galatia, etc., because he addressed it to the believers in those regions. The messages are rather prophetic, having their main application to events to transpire during the remainder of probationary time, and particularly as we near the close of this world’s history.

As will be seen by Rev. 1:3, the blessing rests not only on those who read and hear this prophetic book, but particularly upon those who “keep those things which are written therein.” This is not merely a book of prophetic symbols and interesting lines of prophecy; it is rather a book of most practical duties. We surely can not keep those things which are written in the book unless we understand them. The central point in the whole book may be considered to be Rev. 14:12. And here we find the most important of all things to keep: “Here is the patience of the saints; here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” This describes a people who are living on the earth just before the appearing of the Son of Man on the white cloud to reap the harvest of the earth. It is the last part of a threefold warning that goes to all the inhabitants of the earth to prepare for that great day.

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Search the Scriptures.

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We can not here enter into details concerning the thrilling lines of prophecy contained in this unique book. For clear expositions of these, we refer to most excellent works on the book of Revelation, etc., published at the office where this journal is issued. We merely call attention to the exceeding riches of this wonderful mine of truth of which the half has never been told. It seems that the Master has in His inspired Book, as He did at the marriage in Cana of Galilee, kept the best of the wine till the last of the feast.

The great crisis mentioned in Rev. 22:11, in the closing chapter of Holy Writ, is about to break upon a doomed and heedless world. Then will the decree bring forth:

“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still; and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy, let him be holy still.”

Would we desire to be found on the right side of the line at that decisive hour? Our way is plainly pointed out in verse 14:

“Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in thru the gates into the city.”

So the keeping of the commandments of God is made the prominent thing from the first chapter of the book thru to the last.

As we have now taken, in this series of articles, a brief survey of the broad field of inspired scripture from Genesis to Revelation, I trust we have been impressed with the fact that its beauty increases from commencement to close, that it is indeed as the path of the just, which is “as the shining light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day,” and that we realize more than ever the need of heeding our Saviour’s admonition to “Search the Scriptures.”

“The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” Rev. 22:21.