The Hidden Manna And The White Stone

In my area of suburban Houston there is a Christian counseling service that calls itself Whitestone Associates. It is led by a psychiatrist, Dr. Paul Looney.

In the letter to the church in Pergamum the Spirit refers to the white stone in this way:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.' - Rev 2:17 ESV 

Manna, as most of us know, was the mysterious food that appeared each morning on the ground as the Children of Israel made their way to the promised land (Exod 16:32-34). The word may be translated into English as "what is it?" They knew not whence it came nor why. They only knew that the LORD supplied their daily needs. In like manner these believers would conquer by God's power and be privileged to eat the hidden manna. It is not visible now, but will be available in abundance when they are blessed in that great day to eat the Bread of life forever (John 6:30-35). Jesus, the great I AM, is that Bread of life (John 6:48-58). Those who feed on Him will live forever.

 Besides the hidden manna, the Risen Christ promises to give them each a white stone with a new name written on it. White is a symbol of holiness (Rev. 1:14; 3:4-5,18). A white stone was often prized in those days as an amulet, an object with power to protect its wearer from harm, especially if it had the name or image of some deity engraved on it or was a mark of membership in a special group. We cannot tell for certain what John's revelation implies, but it seems that in the future, when they conquer in the name of Jesus, believers will receive their own white stone, known only to the conqueror (Rev. 19:12), the secret name of Jesus. They will then be granted entrance into His eternal kingdom. By grace even eunuchs and foreigners will be accepted into the LORD's house of prayer.

And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." - Isa 56:6-7 ESV 

Priest-Martyr Antipas Commemorated April 11

Such are the promises of "him who has the sharp two-edged sword" (Rev. 1:16; 2:16; Hebr 4:12). His Word is all-powerful. It reveals the deepest motives of the heart. And there in Pergamum were those who did not deny faith in the Risen Christ "even in the days of Antipas, my witness." We are not told who this Antipas was, because this is the only Biblical reference to him. There is, however, a tradition that says that John the Apostle ordained Antipas as the Bishop of Pergamum during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian. According to this tradition Antipas was martyred in ca. 92 AD by being burned in a brazen bull-shaped altar, used locally to cast out demons. This is the only martyr mentioned by name in John's Revelation, though others are acknowledged (Rev. 6:9-11).

Others were not as faithful, however. Some held the teaching of Balaam; others the teaching of the Nicolaitans. During the Exodus, when Israel camped in Shiitim, east of the Jordan river and northeast of the Dead Sea, many began to worship Baal of Peor, the god of Moab (Num 25:1-3). This worship included sexual immorality, whoring "with the daughters of Moab" and eating food ritually sacrificed to the Moabite gods. Something of this nature was going on in Pergamum, even by those who also claimed to be followers of Christ.  Sexual immorality, adultery and idol worship were all inter-mingled, as it had often been in the days of the Old Testament (Rev. 9:21; 17:2; 18:3,9; 21:8,15; Isa. 57:3). Jeremiah put it this way:

Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, - Jer 7:9 ESV 

For the land is full of adulterers; because of the curse the land mourns, and the pastures of the wilderness are dried up. Their course is evil, and their might is not right. - Jer 23:10 ESV

We have examined the works of the Nicolaitans in an earlier blog. Exactly what the teaching of these Nicolaitans was is unclear. Obviously it had to do with some form of idolatry. One website I found goes through a rather strange process to conclude that John refers to a secret cabal and that there are still Nicolaitans at work in modern times. The writer concludes that they are the modern-day Illuminati or High-Degree Freemasons, the worshippers of Santa Claus and various ancient Roman gods as well as Jewish Kabbalists, etc. —all under the control of Satan. I will not link my readers to the site. The reasoning is quite strange. Nevertheless, the warning John lifts up is real enough. All believers in Christ must ever be prepared to repent and re-examine their beliefs and life-styles in the light of God's Holy Word. We will have occasion to consider these issues in our study of the next letter.

Secrets Of The Secret Kingdom

In my previous post I wrote about the secret kingdom known only to believers in Christ. Today I want to point out how things work in that kingdom of God.

The crowd that followed Jesus across the Sea of Tiberias did not know about this secret kingdom. Their focus was upon themselves and their needs for food and healing. To obtain these they, like all outside Jesus' secret kingdom, believed they had to do something to obtain God's good will. So they wanted to know how to do the works of God. Jesus answered them,

"This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.  

So they said to him, "Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" 

Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 

They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." 

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. - Jhn 6:29-35 ESV

Believing doesn't sound like a work, does it? Believing seems to be passive, whereas working is active, something one does. How indeed can believing be the work of God? Aha! That is indeed the very thing the crowd missed and still misses to this very day. Faith, believing in Jesus, the bread of life, is indeed the work of God. It is not the work we do for God. It is His work, God working in us. The Apostle Paul puts it this way,

But the righteousness based on faith says, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) or "'Who will descend into the abyss?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. ... For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." ... So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. - Rom 10:6-10, 12-13, 17 ESV

Read the whole chapter very carefully. Throughout it Paul emphasizes that faith comes from hearing the word of Christ. The Gospels make the same point. The Word was with God and the Word became flesh and blood in the person of Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1; 1:14). Whoever believes in Jesus, the Word, and in the words he speaks has eternal life. He is righteous and forgiven in God's eyes. Jesus' disciples abide in his word (John 8:31). That word is seed planted in their hearts. It takes root and grows, producing a life of faith, love and obedience to God (Luke 8:11-15). Jesus' disciples cling to this word he has planted in their hearts and put their trust in it. This faith is the work of God, God's gift to his children.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. - Eph 2:4-10 ESV

Word, Seed, Bread of life—these images all speak of Jesus through whom we daily receive forgiveness for our sins and through whom we are richly filled with abundant life of Christ (John 10:10). If you know about these things then you both know about Jesus' secret kingdom and you know some of the secrets of the kingdom. You know that Jesus, the Word made flesh, does everything in his kingdom through his Word. Through his Word he creates and sustains faith. Through his Word he fills the hearts of his disciples with love for one another. Through his Word he moves them to love, forgive, feed, clothe and care for those in need even as he does. As John writes in his epistle,

We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. - 1Jo 4:19-21 ESV

That's how things work in the secret kingdom of God. It is not how they work in all other kingdoms. We'll finally have to take up that topic next time as we look into the kingdoms of this world, how they work and how God uses them to maintain outward peace and order.
 

The Invisible Kingdom

In my last post we heard Jesus respond sharply to those who followed him across the sea.

When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal." - Jhn 6:25-27 ESV

 Notice their typical response.

Then they said to him, "What must we do, to be doing the works of God?" - Jhn 6:28 ESV

Its always that way. Everyone thinks he has to DO something to get God's blessings. In some way or another we have to get God to forgive us, like us, trade with us and so be on our side to rescue, redeem and feed us. That's called self-justification.

I've been pointing to Abraham Maslow and all his talk about the hierarchy of needs, starting with basic physiological needs and moving on to what he called self-actualization. Self-actualized people, he says, accept themselves for who they are, they're spontaneous and natural, have a mission in life, unflappable, alive in the moment, spontaneous, open to new ideas, and on an on. Maslow believed that everyone has an internal drive to realize those higher levels. Step by step anyone is capable of climbing up to that free, uninhibited uncontrolled, trusting, unpremeditated expression of the self!

Sounds really great. That's why his ideas are so overwhelmingly popular. Motivational speakers use them all the time. Corporations incorporate them into their culture. Popular writers publish books about them by the thousands.

But they all miss the point! You can't ever actualize yourself, no matter what you do.

Remember Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus, one of the wisest leaders of Israel, a man who came to see Jesus secretly?

This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.  

Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." 

Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" 

Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. - Jhn 3:2-6 ESV

Jesus spoke about an invisible kingdom, one you cannot enter unless you are born of the Spirit. In other words, the gates are locked until God opens them and leads you in. And only those on the inside know about and see this kingdom of God. In this kingdom the insider discovers forgiveness for all of his failures. He feeds daily upon God's mercy and love. He finds nurture for his soul and his heart is filled with peace, peace with God, with himself and with his fellow men. He sees the world with different eyes. He sees God's hand at work in his life, even in the midst of suffering, pain and loss. He is vibrant and filled with a hope that reaches far, far beyond the present and on into eternity. He actually believes that his body will be raised from death and that he will spend endless ages with loved ones and friends in a perfect world. And so he is filled with endless joy and with praise to God his Father and to Jesus his Brother, Savior and Friend.

Do you know about this secret kingdom? If you do, then you know why I say that Maslow and all his disciples, as well as any other teachers—be they psychologists, philosophers or priests—don't get it. The gates of this secret kingdom are locked to them.

Listen to Matthew as he shares Jesus' words to his disciples.

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 

And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ. - Mat 16:15-20 ESV

The church is built upon Peter's confession: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus is the Rock (Deut. 32:4; Matt. 7:24-25; 1 Cor. 10:4), the immovable foundation against which all the powers of hell and darkness cannot prevail. So Paul writes,

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. - 2Cr 5:14-19 ESV

The disciples of Jesus are members of this invisible kingdom. They have all been reborn by the working of God's Spirit in their hearts and lives. They are, as Paul said, a new creation. They are the church, the living, active, loving members of Christ's Body. Jesus is their Lord and King and they live to love him, serve him and love others even as he loves and forgives them.

This does not mean, of course, that Jesus has relinquished his kingship over this world. He still controls it and provides us with a certain semblance of outward peace. This we have come to call his kingdom of the left hand. But more about that another day.