Revelation 5:4-6 “I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.’ Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne…”

Are you ever concerned about the future? When life is good, we may not think about the future much. We are too busy enjoying all the goodies in the present to worry about things to come. “Carpe diem,” “Seize the day” becomes our theme. We don’t stop to consider that the good times could come to an end.

But introduce some trouble, or a little uncertainty into our present, and our future becomes a matter of great concern. Make a trip to the emergency room, spend a day in the hospital, or have the doctor order up a series of tests for you, and all of a sudden the future is a big deal. Lose your job, or receive news that your company is “down-sizing,” or take a cut in pay, and the future starts demanding a bigger percentage of our attention. Experience a close brush with violent crime, and we might wish for a crystal ball to see how it’s all going to turn out.

The Apostle John was concerned about the future, too. In the vision John sees in these verses from Revelation 5, he sees God holding the future in his hands in the form of a scroll. The whole future is there— the scroll is full of writing on both sides. But it is sealed shut with seven seals. No one can look into the future, no one can read it because God has hidden it from view.

Who can open this scroll and show us the future written on it? There are those who claim that they can open the scroll today, but they are all frauds. I know of two establishments in my town that advertise “Psychic: Palms read, Card readings.”  But the person inside cannot read what God has written on the scroll in his hand. Even more respectable people with titles like “futurist” or “weatherman” can’t tell you with certainty what tomorrow holds. The scroll in God’s hand is sealed with seven seals.

The Apostle John was deeply troubled that no one could open this scroll. He, too, was concerned about death and survival. Death had become an all too common part of his life. Of the twelve men Jesus chose as disciples, only John was left. The others had all been put to death by persecutors. Many other leaders of the church at this time were being gathered by the Roman authorities and executed. John’s concern extended to the survival of the Church he had helped to establish. He deeply wanted to see that everything would be alright.

Then he received this comfort: “Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” Do you recognize this Lion? The old patriarch Jacob spoke of him just before he died in Genesis chapter 49. “You are a lion’s cub, O Judah….The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.” This great ruler from Judah didn’t look very lion-like when he first appeared in Israel, but looks can be deceiving. If we find it hard to identify him, John’s next description may make it easier: “Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne…” Jesus is the one! Jesus is worthy to show us the future!

You couldn’t create two more seemingly contradictory descriptions than these: “…the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed” and “Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain…” Aren’t these two things opposites? How could they be the same?

You couldn’t create two more seemingly contradictory days than Good Friday and Easter Sunday. On Good Friday Jesus looks absolutely helpless. Whatever his enemies want to do to him, they do to him. He ends up tortured to death on a cross. On Easter Sunday, Jesus looks absolutely victorious. If death can’t hold him, if the grave can’t oppose him, who or what else can?

In his death on the cross Jesus is the Lamb who was slain. By his resurrection from the dead Jesus is the Lion who has triumphed. By them both Jesus is worthy to open the scroll and show us the future. Do you see why?

When Jesus was slain, he didn’t just die like a lamb. There was more than a matter of similarity here, with both going quietly without a fight. Jesus died as a Lamb, the Lamb of sacrifice, giving his life in payment for our sins. When Jesus rose, his triumph over death was more than a personal triumph. It was a triumph for us all. It wasn’t just his death defeated. Death itself was defeated, ours included.

By paying for our sins and defeating death, then, Jesus has written our futures. They may not look the same in all the details. You may die rich, or you may die poor. You may die old, or you may die young. You may die peacefully, or you may die violently. But in every case, your future is the same. You will rise from death to live and rule in heaven eternally, for Jesus is the Lamb who was slain, and the Lion of the tribe of Judah has triumphed.