The teens were shocked a bit, or at least interested, when I suggested that God has at His heavenly headquarters a special angel whose career is that of Chief Cartoonist. Of course, to them “cartoons” are funny papers; they haven’t come to the age that they appreciate political cartoons. But the idea is not outlandish. We read in Revelation 1:1 of how the Father, the supreme Ruler of the universe, takes those five steps in communicating to us the book of Revelation: [1] its source was He, who [2] “God gave [it] unto [His Son] Jesus Christ” with the ultimate goal [5] of giving it to us in a form we could assimilate, “to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass.”
The huge mass of information would be greater than the Encyclopedia Britannica, beyond our comprehension; so in one of the five steps, it must pass through this special angel, the Cartoonist whose is this special task: “and He sent and signified it by His angel,” who then communicated it “unto His servant John” in a form that the lonely apostle on Patmos could transcribe: a slender little volume of 22 chapters. “Signified” is put in sign form.
The “cartoon” method of communication is illustrated in the book of Daniel. The pagan king Nebuchadnezzaar is given a dream (obviously crafted by this same “angel”) that depicts world history in the form of an “image” with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, thighs of brass, legs of iron, and feet and toes of iron and clay mixed. And there we have the truth of world history that Charlemagne, Napoleon, Kaiser Wilhelm, even Hitler, battled against vainly. Europe simply will not “cleave.” The United States of America can “cleave” but not the states of Europe.
The same “angel” gave Daniel the visions of the four beasts coming out of the sea (ch. 7), etc. All it takes to understand these two books of Daniel and Revelation is some humble common sense and the patient willingness to let the holy book, the Bible, explain itself. “Humble” because the Holy Spirit has enlightened reverent-minded scholars in past centuries to dig for truth and have found it, and the common sense enables us to appreciate their contributions; but their mines, unlike the “49ers” gold mines, have not been exhausted; there is still precious truth yet to be discovered and understood—though it will never contradict previous truth.
The fifth step is you and I understanding and appreciating this “revelation” in the book that bears the name. Read it, as if for your life, as it may well be in the tumultuous times “which must shortly come to pass.” The “blessing” is promised; reading it brings happiness.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
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