Continued from the HEART “And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star having fallen from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key to the bottomless pit” (Rev. 9:1). “Fear not; I am the first and the last, and the living One; I was even dead, but behold, I am living for the ages of the ages: and I have the keys of death and hades” (Rev. 1:17-18, Diaglott). To John on the isle of Patmos there came One who announced Himself as “the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last.” At His girdle hung “the keys of hell and of death.” This One was our Lord Jesus Christ! When Jesus came into the world in the humiliation of the Incarnation, He started on a route of conquest that took Him through the lonely years prior to His introduction at the muddy waters of Jordan, when the bony prophetic finger of John the Baptist was pointed at Him and those significant words were uttered, “Behold, the lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world!” (Jn. 1:29). These words were followed by the testimony of His Father in heaven as the voice spoke proclaiming, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mat. 3:17) For some thirty-three and a half years He overcame and lived an impeccable life so that it was said of Him, “He was tempted in all points like as we, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15). Jesus’ flawless and fruitful life was followed by a decisive death. He went to Calvary to endure inexplicable and incomparable suffering: suffering of which we can only have a hint; suffering we can only look at curiously with a sob in our throats; suffering veiled in the mystery of the bearing of sin; suffering surrounded by torn rocks and a sun that refused to shine and an earth that writhed in agony. As He hung there alone, God reached down His giant fist and gathered the accumulated sins, weaknesses, sorrows, and death of mankind and placed them upon Him. In the awful agony of Calvary, Christ made His soul an offering for sin! The sin of the world was imputed unto Him. When He had become an offering for sin, He gave up the ghost and came down from the mystery of His sufferings, having finished that work. What men saw was a man hanging limp — every bone out of joint, a swollen tongue protruding from burning lips that cried, “It is finished!” For centuries now Christians have supposed that when Jesus cried out, “It is finished,” that meant that His work of redemption was completed. Many refer to this as “the finished work of Calvary.” But there is too much stopping at the cross! If we stop at the cross we end with a dead Christ, and a dead Christ can save no one! Paul wrote, “If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins” (I Cor. 15:17). We must get out thoughts broadened about the redemptive work of Christ. Yes, He died for our sins, but never forget — He was also raised again for our justification! There is no “finished work” at the cross! There is not even a "finished work” at the resurrection! The redemptive work of Christ was not finished until He had ascended up on High bearing the precious blood of His atonement into the Holiest Place of the heavenlies, as it is written, “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once to the Holiest Place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Heb. 9:12,24). When the Christ cried, “It is finished,” it was the cup of suffering — the excruciating agony of the cross — that was finished, not the work of redemption! When He died He then entered the darkest night of death, and was ushered through the somber gates and behind the fearful bars of Hades, the unseen, imperceptible realm of the dead. “Thou wilt not leave my soul in Hades” (Acts 2:31). The message is clear — the Christ not only died, He went to hell! It was imperative that Christ experience all that man experiences in the dread domain of sin and death, in order to take captivity captive and release mankind from the totality of the kingdom of darkness. Then Hell itself in fear began to quake, And, in alarm, thus to the devil spake, “Jesus! Dost thou not fear that mighty Name? And is this Jesus — Nazarene — the same Who once cried, ‘Lazarus! Come forth!’ and swift The bands of death were loosed, his fetters rift, And through thy gates impassable he broke, So soon as that almighty word was spoke? Let but that Jesus once invade these halls, And in that hour thy boasted empire falls! What if the victim thou dost proudly claim Shall as the Victor bring thy pride to shame?” And then He arose the conquering Christ! What a marvelous turn of events! He took control of the situation as with one exultant shout He grasped the keys of death and hell from him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, stripped away the power of death, burst asunder the bars of hell, stalked boldly out in eternal triumph over all the dread powers of that unseen realm, entered back into His body in the garden tomb, passed through the walls of rock as water passes through a filter, ascended up far above all heavens, stepped up to the Father’s throne, and presented the tokens of His redemption. The Father said, “Sit down, Son, at my right hand until your enemies are made your footstool!” Jesus has the keys; He proved that He has the keys of both death and hell; for He unlocked both and arose Victor. Death could not hold its prey! Hell could not hold its prey! Oh Christ! Thou Son of the living God! Thou art the resurrection and the life; Thou wast dead; and, behold, Thou art alive forevermore and in Thy nail-pierced hand dost hold in triumph the keys of hell and death. Oh death, where is thy sting? Oh grave, where is thy victory? Oh gates of hell, thou shalt not prevail, for the Redeemer of Israel and the Saviour of the world holds in His triumphant hand thy key! Who now has the key of death? OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST! Who now has the key to hell? OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST! He also holds the key to the whole dread realm of sin and sorrow that leads to death and hell! He holds the key to everything, for He has been given all power in heaven and in earth! His redemption and His mighty power reach to the lowest depths of the bottomless, within and without. He alone is the One who opens and no man can shut, who shuts and no man can open (Rev. 3:7). No one can open or shut any realm apart from our Lord Jesus the Christ! No one passes through the gates of either death or hell, or any other height or depth, except the Lord open or close those gates. Oh, the wonder of it! Some suppose that it is the devil who is given the key to the bottomless pit. But now that Christ has the keys of death and hell it is not to be imagined that He is about to surrender or concede into the hands of Satan, or any of his emissaries, whether man or spirit, any portion of His own authority. We must not confuse the “bottomless pit” with Hades, nor should we think of a literal opening of a literal pit, and an eruption of the spirits of demons upon the earth. Fancies like these easily gain ascendancy over the minds of those people who only think carnally. The truth is so much more glorious! The “star” who has come down from heaven is Christ our Lord! We are helped to identify Him, for “the key of the pit of the abyss” is given to Him, and He unlocked this place. Also, He is “the angel of the abyss,” and He is “king” over the terrible swarm of locusts that fly out of the smoke from the abyss. The devil is not king over anything! Christ has overcome him, conquered him, stripped him, spoiled him, and destroyed him! Aren’t you glad! When John relates his vision of the “key” to the abyss being given to the One called a “star” many people imagine that the prophet is speaking of a literal metal device hanging on a key ring like one uses today to unlock a door. In vision John may have seen such a key, but the key spiritually symbolizes something infinitely greater! Yes, a key does open or close something, but it can also be a word that releases some power that has been restricted, or binds some influence that has gone unrestrained; it can also be a word that opens a hidden mystery or a means by which something unknown is discovered. A key can also be the answer or solution to a problem, quandary, plight, or dilemma! A key also bespeaks of authority and power. In the natural, when one is given the key to his new car, he then has the authority to start it up and drive it away. Jesus said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth!” And spiritually He has been given the key to the bottomless pit or abyss which lies in the heart of man! Thank God, our Lord Jesus Christ has the key, the solution to every dark realm of bondage, sin, sorrow, pain, death, and hell that any man can know without or within. He has all the problems connected with man’s deliverance and transformation unraveled and solved! When on earth He worked out the problem for Himself, overcame in it, and now stands to proclaim to all men everywhere the GREAT EMANCIPATION. Through His sinless life of perfect obedience to the Father, and through His death and resurrection, Christ took away from the adversary every power of sin, death, and from hell its power of containment; no longer can negation claim the final victory over any man — CHRIST HAS THE KEY, and shall ultimately bring every man into the fullness of His Life. Christ has the power to deal with every issue in every man, and in every realm, and He holds the keys to everything every where!
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 20:11:43 +0000
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