The Hidden Mana (Revelation 1-3)

Does the Lord want us to understand the Book of Revelation?

Yes, He does not give us revelations without an interpretation – revelations must give us actionable knowledge.

How does God reveal things to us?

Directly through revelation.

Indirectly, through a key.

What keys has He given us to unlock the meaning of the book of Revelation?

The Joseph Smith Translation of the Book of Revelation.

Modern scripture: D&C, Book of Mormon.

Old Testament allusions: Daniel, Isaiah.

Poetic imagery.

Parallel images.

The Holy Spirit.

 

 

The King of Kings

READ Revelation 1:1-3 (JST)

What are we instructed to do with the Book of Revelation?

Read it.

Hear or really listen for inspiration from God.

Understand.

Keep or abide by the things that are written in the book.

 

READ Revelation 1:4-5, 10-11

Where does this message come from?

Directly from an angel who received it directly from God.

Also, directly from Jesus Christ Himself (incidentally, this is the last recorded visit from Christ to any of the New Testament saints).

 

READ Revelation 1:12-16, 20

What are the seven golden candlesticks or golden menorah?

The seven Churches in Turkey.

What is the symbolism of the Churches as an olive oil burning menorah (like the one in the Temple Court in Jerusalem)?

Olive oil = Holy Spirit.

The seven Churches must be filled with the Spirit that they might bring light, healing and peace to the world (see Matthew 5:15 and Luke 10:34); a “church” or organization cannot be filled with the Spirit but the people that are members of it can – this is what is really being referenced here – the people of the Churches in Turkey have an opportunity to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

The shining menorah is also a symbol of the Tree of Life (as is Moses’ Burning Bush – a tree or bush which was shining because it was at the bottom of a pillar of fire that descended from heaven – see Exodus 3:2-3) – which is a symbol of Wisdom or the wise application of the mind of God or Holy Spirit, symbolized by the olive oil and light.

Where is Christ in relation to the Churches?

He is in their midst.

He is with each individual within the seven Churches, seeking to interact with them if they will but hear and see Him.

He is not an absentee Lord but is close by to minister to those in need who reach out to Him

What do the words describing Christ emphasize (“golden”, “white”, “flame”, “furnace”, “sun”)?

Glory and light (which equals truth, intelligence, spirit, life).

Power (again “life” and “glory”).

Purity (“light” and “spirit”).

What makes the sound of “many waters”?

Ocean waves or mountain waterfall.

How do you feel when you hear the sound of “many waters”?

Peaceful, calming, soothing, healing.

Awestruck, its majesty, intimidated, respectful.

The voice of God is powerful but instills solace.

What are the “seven stars” in Christ’s right hand?

“Servants of the seven churches”.

Church leaders.

Men who are in Christ’s hand – have been ministered to by Him as the Second Comforter – have received their calling and election – these are not always the same as the organizational leaders of a Church, however – they could be anyone in the Church membership who have truly come unto Christ. 

Contrasting to the “stars of heaven” that Lucifer drew after him (see Revelation 12:4) – who were the third of the host of heaven who did not keep their first estate: Satan drags down his followers while Christ upholds His with an upturned hand.

What does the sharp, two-edged sword coming out of Christ’s mouth represent?

Christ’s words are truth (see John 17:17, Ephesians 1:13, James 1:18).

One side of the two-edged sword of truth “cuts” the wicked to the very center because they take it to be hard (see 1 Nephi 16:2 and Acts 5:33).

The other side of the sword of truth penetrates to the very soul of the righteous, causing them to repent – moving them to action.

 

READ Revelation 1:17-19

What is John’s reaction to entering the presence of the resurrected Lord, who he knew in mortal life 60 years before?

He fell at His feet like he was dead.

He was completely overcome – he almost lost consciousness.

What does the Lord’s reaction teach us about Him?

He lays His hand gently on John and says “fear not” = shows the Lord’s sweet tenderness in the face of our natural fear.

He states the victory He won over death – reminding John of what he had already witnessed.

What key(s) does the Lord hold in His other hand?

The key He won which opened the door of hell and death (see 2 Nephi 9:10).

Holding this key means if Christ opens the door, no man can shut it or if He shuts it, not man can open it again (see Revelation 3:7-8).

What happens if this heavy door is shut and locked before us?

Spiritual death separates us from God, by definition.

What is the good news of Christ’s gospel?

No one returns to the Father without permission of the holder of the key, because He is also the Gatekeeper (see 2 Nephi 9:41).

But His invitation is to all (2 Nephi 26:33).

 

 

Exhorting the Churches of God

READ Revelation 2:1

What does it imply that Christ has personal messages for the members of these seven churches, including but not restricted to, those within them that have come unto Him?

Christ is not far from us – His personal ministry continued/continues after His death and resurrection.

That although He has created “worlds without number”, He also notices when a sparrow falls; He ministers to His creations one by one and all things are numbered unto Him and He knows them all (see Moses 1:33, Matthew 10:29, 3 Nephi 11:15, Moses 1:35).

He continues to minister to those who have come unto Him – He wants to know us (which is eternal life) which requires that He take up His habitation with us.

He wants all members of His church (and all mankind) to likewise come unto Him and be saved.

 

READ Revelation 2:2

How could men say they are Apostles but are found out to be liars?

Either the communication channels were particularly bad in the ancient Church, such that people did not know who the Apostles were.

Or perhaps men had become OFFICIAL Apostles by 96 AD - when this was written (as John was a Roman prisoner on the island of Patmos and the church had been fighting obvious apostasy for 35 years already) but were not TRUE Apostles (i.e. were not witnesses of Christ’s resurrection and did not hold the High Priesthood After the Order of the Son of God) but were scholars and philosophers after the Greek tradition or were administrators and leaders after the Roman fashion.

 

READ Revelation 2:4, 7

If Christ is the bridegroom, what is the “first love” that the Church in Ephesus has left?

The Church is the bride, so the “first love” is Christ Himself (see D&C 109:74).

He asks them to repent – to come back to Him and love Him again.

And promises those who do that they can still, individually, “eat of the Tree of Life” or come unto Christ and partake of His salvation for them (see 1 Nephi 8 and 2 Nephi 31-32).

 

READ Revelation 2:9-11

How is Christ’s perspective of this mortal life different from most of ours?

Poverty and riches are not mutually exclusive – you can be temporally poor but spiritually rich or visa-versa; and occasionally being temporally poor aids in acquiring spiritual riches because of one’s dependence on the Lord; tribulation and adversity, even “unto death” can do the same thing if you allow them to humble you and send you to your knees to cry unto the Lord for mercy and grace.

A lifetime of tribulation is like “ten days” to Christ – this life is fast and enduring to the end of this life, in the context of all that has gone before and all that will come after, is not a long time to have to endure (not saying it isn’t tough though – just that we don’t have to hang on forever).

Physical death is not the problem but the second spiritual death is – no one gets out of this life alive so do not forfeit your ultimate reward through cowardice or capitulation of the gospel in the face of physical death – be valiant in the testimony of Jesus (if you have received it) - (see Alma 12:16 and Helaman 14:18).

Death is not the culmination of life – Christ’s perspective, having won the victory over death, is important for those of us who have yet to win that victory (all of us), or have not yet died (again, all of us); “life” or consciousness continues after death.

 

READ Revelation 2:14

What is the message of the story of Balaam the Prophet and Balak the Moabite King? (see Numbers 22-24, 31)

Balaam was a legitimate prophet of God but was eager to receive the honors of men.

He went against the council of God and prophesied to Balak the Moabite King.

In time, Balaam’s lust for worldly honors corrupted him and he tempted the Israelites with immoral beliefs of the Canaanites.

A “Balaam prophet” would be eager to comprise the teachings of the Church to obtain the honors of men – they are very aware of “political correctness” at the expense of doctrinal purity; they want to become popular with the world and conform the beliefs of the Church with the prevailing views of the culture that they live in; they will conduct focus groups and opinion polls to make sure that they are aligned with what is popular in the world.

How does one combat the “doctrine of Balaam”?

With the “sharp two-edged sword” of truth (see v 12).

Exposing false doctrines, even those that are popularly accepted as enlightened truth by all the world, to the real truth (things as they truly are) will “tear them in pieces and none can deliver” (see Mormon 5:22-24 and Jacob 4:13).

 

READ Revelation 2:17 and Deuteronomy 8:3

What is “hidden manna” given to those who embrace truth in the face of popular falsehood taught as truth?

Sacred knowledge not given to the world because they have not qualified to receive it (see 2 Nephi 32:6 and Alma 12:9-11).

The hidden manna is: how to rend the veil and enter the presence of the Lord in the flesh (see D&C 84:19-23) despite not being taught these doctrines or keys by those who are in authority in Christ’s church.

 

READ D&C 130:10-11

What is the purpose of the white stone given to those who come into the Celestial Kingdom?

It is a Urim and Thummim or seer stone or revealer of hidden or sacred knowledge.

It is a way that the “hidden manna” continues to be delivered to those who have “ears to hear”.

What does the fact that the white stone is given to those who inherit the Celestial Kingdom, so that they can see “things pertaining to a higher order of kingdoms”?

There are kingdoms of even more glory than the Celestial Kingdom!

The God’s continue to progress in glory (see TPJS 391:2 to 392:2).

We only know a little bit about the eternities – enough to help us to get through this stage effectively – but we should curb our pride in our “knowledge” because we actually know very little of all there is to know.

What is a Urim and Thummim?

Urim = lights.

Thummim = perfections.

It is a revelatory instrument that enables the user to receive light in all its perfections.

The mortal human eye can only perceive a narrow band of light – it cannot see light at a higher frequency (ultraviolet, x-ray, gamma) or lower frequency (infrared, microwave, radio) – the U&T allows you to see light or energy waves perfectly or to see what is otherwise hidden from you because of your natural or physical eyes.

Light = truth, intelligence, knowledge, spirit, glory (see D&C 88:66 and D&C 93:36).

It is a revealer of “hidden manna”.

When does one receive a new name?

When one attains to a new station or major change in life, such as birth, marriage, baptism of fire, calling and election, etc.

New names suggest a beginning, a cleansing, a fresh start, a renewal or awakening, a graduation, the completion of a stage or testing period when an honor or title has been obtained, or the crowning of a king or queen (see v10).

What does a “key” do?

Unlocks something that is closed up.

 

READ Revelation 3:15-18

Why is being “lukewarm” worse than being “cold” to the Lord?

Lukewarm carries an air of careless indifference – of not being bothered one way or the other because one’s heart is set on something completely different – in this case, temporal riches.

The Lord is saying that we will be damned by our indifference just as fast (or faster) than by our willful but misguided “unbelief” (believing that which is false) – being wrong is not as bad as distaining or not caring for the things of God at all; think about Saul transformation to Paul as a “cold” to “hot” transformation while many Saints today are lukewarm.

Lukewarm water is not good for refinement/washing (hot) or for refreshment (cold).

How are these saints “poor, wretched and miserable” if they are rich and want for nothing?

The deceitfulness of riches has them – they have faith in their money to save them in the only world they are really focusing on.

They are spiritually poor but don’t even realize it – because they are lukewarm and don’t care anyway.

Why does the Lord “counsel” them to buy refined gold, white garments, and anointing eye-salve of Him?

He’s saying “if I were you, I’d…”; but He does not compel them, only advises them – they have their agency to the end.

Refined gold will last through the fire – but it will cost them all they have to get it; this is an analogy similar to the man who found a goodly pearl and sold all he had to obtain it.

White garments may be plain compared to the silks and scarlets but only Christ can cover our nakedness while those other garments still leave us exposed like the Emperor’s New Clothes.

He calls them “blind” and in need of the ability to see what is really before them – truth or things as they really are; but they will need an anointing by one with power to heal to actually see; this will require humility on the part of someone who thinks they are comfortable and have need of nothing – but don’t realize they are living in the “Matrix”, an alternative reality that is actually a transitionary, probationary state that is not “real” even though it seems to be – but requires one to “wake up” to what is really happening to them, i.e. a test.

 

READ Revelation 3:8, 19-22

What door is described in verse 8 and what door is described in verse 20?

The Lord’s door in verse 8 is open, inviting and welcoming – He is the gatekeeper and holds the key.

The door to our hearts in verse 20 is shut; we are the gatekeeper and we hold the key.

Why might we not open immediately when hearing Christ knock at the door of our heart?

We don’t recognize Him – He is a stranger to us and far from our hearts (see Mosiah 5:13); in ancient Israel, no one was allowed in after dark unless the Gatekeeper recognized their voice – and we don’t recognize Christ’s voice so we won’t let Him in.

Where your treasure is, there your heart is also – if you get rid of all of your material baggage and are waiting and ready to go when the knock comes, you will open “immediately” for your Lord when He knocks upon His return with a feast to share with you (see Luke 12:33-37).

If our abode is a mess, we will be embarrassed to open immediately but will make the honored guest wait on the doorstep while we do some frantic, last minute cleaning; but He will walk away sorrowing in the meantime.

Is this an actual invitation for the Lord to visit you in the flesh and eat?

Yes!

He wants to break bread and drink wine with us now, so that we may have part with Him later.

He wants us to know the Lamb now, so that we can abide the Lion when He comes in His glory.

What does it mean “to them that overcome will I grant to sit with me”…”even as I also overcame” and “am set down with my Father in His throne”?

Christ is the prototype of the saved being…

And descended below all things so that He could overcome all things – suffering and dying unjustly so that He could win the victory over death and overcome it…

By attaining to the resurrection of the dead Himself as His Father did, because death could not hold Him, it being unjust that He had died – a sinless man suffering the wages of sin…

And only those who are precisely like Christ can be saved (see LoF 7:9, 15-16), so…

We must also work out our own salvation with fear and trembling before our Father, as Christ did in Gethsemane before His (see TPJS 390-393).

Those that hath an ear, let them hear what the Spirit saith…!