Who is worthy to open the scroll and the seals... Revelation 5 and 6

And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals. Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?” And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.

So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it. But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.”

--Revelation 5:1-5

I remember my sister and other WMSCOG members talking to me about these verses.  This is a passage the World Mission Society Church of God uses to try to explain that Ahnsahnghong is the second coming of Jesus who is the only one who can unseal the scroll and "unlock the mysteries" of the Bible.  The scroll in Revelation 5, they say, is the Bible.

"Why do you say this scroll is the Bible and not something else?" I asked.
The answer was, "Because the Bible was written on a scroll, as you can see in Luke 4:16-17, '...He [Jesus] stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him....'"

Just because it is a scroll does not prove it is the Bible.
Yes, the words of the Lord were written on scrolls.  This is evident throughout the Bible.  But think about it... were the Scriptures the only things written on scrolls?  Of course not.  The common way to write anything was by scroll.  We can even see an example in Acts 19:19,

A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.

Another reason they insist this scroll is the Bible is that, they say, Ahnsahnghong explained, restored, and revealed Biblical truths that have been either long lost or hidden for ages.  That is exactly what this website and others like it are here to debate.

For example, in their study on the Secret of the Seven Thunders, they claim that Ahnsahnghong restored the 7 Feasts of God, which were written on the back of the tablets of the Ten Commandments.  One problem (among others) is that the Bible says only the Ten Commandments were written on those tablets and nothing else.  You can find details about that in this article.

Is there another way to tell if the WMSCOG's interpretation here is correct, that the scroll in Revelation 5 is the Bible, and Ahnsahnghong has opened its seals to reveal its hidden mysteries?
All we have to do is continue reading in Revelation to see the WMSCOG's contradiction.

The first thing we need to know is that the WMSCOG considers Revelation (at least this part of it) to have a definite sequence.  They say in their sermon The Passover and the Sign of Promise:

Rev 7:1-3 『After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth....
"After this" means after the occurrence of the event described in Revelation 6: "The stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind." Here the stars in the sky and a fig tree represent the nation of Israel. And wind means war. Israel was involved in a great war during which the Jews suffered horribly as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind; 6,000,000 Jews were killed by the German Nazis during that war, which was the Second World War. Therefore, "after this" means "after the Second World War" (Rev 6:12-17).

The WMSCOG says that the sealing of the 144,000 in Revelation 7 occurs after the events of Revelation 6:12-17.  Let's go back and see what that is...
Rev. 6:12-13  I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.  And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.

The Seals are opened in order. 

The sixth seal comes in sequence after the first five seals.  If the sixth seal is the Second World War, as the WMSCOG claims, then the first five seals must have happened before (or at least within) World War II.  Let's consider the first five seals:

First Seal, Rev. 6:1-2, the White Horse
...He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. (Rev. 6:2)
Bible scholars have several possibilities of who (or what) this conqueror is.  There has been plenty of conquering in history.  Yes, it's possible that this has happened already.

Second Seal, Rev. 6:3-4, the Red Horse
...And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword. (Rev. 6:4)
Again, there has been plenty of conflict on earth, with people killing one another.  Yes, it's possible that this also has happened already.

Third Seal, Rev. 6:5-6, the Black Horse
...A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine. (Rev. 6:6)
Whether you consider this economic problems, scarcity of food, or scarcity of spiritual food, it is possible that this has happened already.

Fourth Seal, Rev. 6:7-8, the Pale Horse
...And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him.... (Rev. 6:8)
Yes, there have been times when the death tolls from wars or natural disasters or diseases have been staggering, but...

...And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. (Rev. 6:8)

Whether you consider verse 8 to be the result of only the fourth seal, or of the second (sword), third (hunger) and fourth (death) seals together, or however you wish to figure it ... ONE FOURTH of the earth has been killed.

I'd like to know -- What does the WMSCOG figure has killed a fourth of the earth?  When did that happen?

If the WMSCOG believes that the 6th seal has happened already (WWII), then they must have an answer for what killed 1/4 of the earth.  So, what was it?

And then the  
Fifth Seal, Rev. 6:9-11, the Cry of the Martyrs
...I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held....it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed. (Rev. 6:9,11)
There are more martyrs killed between the opening of the fifth seal and the last day.

According to the WMSCOG...
...there were no true Christians on earth for many, many centuries, until Ahnsahnghong "re-established" the Passover and the "sealing work" began in 1948.
Therefore, there were no saints (according to the WMSCOG) who could have been martyred before 1948.

...the end of the world is imminent--God will judge the world by fire, and it could happen any day soon.
Have there been any WMSCOG members killed because of their faith yet?  (Wouldn't this be featured prominently on the official church webpage if even one had been martyred?)  Will there be any martyred before judgment day?

...those with the seal of God are protected from all disasters, and "Mother Jerusalem" will take them straight to heaven with her.
If someone is protected from all disasters by God's seal, then how is it even possible for them to be martyred?

Bible scholars have a variety of ideas about what the scroll represents, such as the destiny of mankind or the inheritance deed of the saints.

But is it the Bible that was sealed and only Ahnsahnghong can open the seals and reveal its secrets?  Definitely not!  The fifth seal alone contradicts the WMSCOG's own teaching.

Besides that, there are far too many other contradictions and problems with Ahnsahnghong and the WMSCOG's so-called "revealed secrets," making them an unreliable source for any Bible information.

About the 144,000

One of the ways the World Mission Society Church of God tries to draw new members is to tell them about how close we are to the end of times, and how plagues and disasters and wars are part of the end times events, and that if they want God’s protection from all this, they need to join the WMSCOG in taking the Passover. This all stems from passages in Revelation chapters 7, 9, and 14, which speak of 144,000 having the seal of God.

If you read some of the Fragrances of Zion that members write and get posted on the main church website (http://english.watv.org/fragrance/list.asp), you’ll see that they call themselves the 144,000 and are waiting for all 144,000 of their lost brothers and sisters to be found so that “Father” can return soon.

So I thought I’d find out more about WMSCOG doctrine concerning the 144,000. Ahnsahnghong talked about it in his book, “The Mystery of God and the Spring of the Water of Life.” Here’s what he said…

On page 77 (Chapter 5), he explains that in the last days, only the 144,000 will be the ones to be saved--left alive and transfigured to go up to heaven.

On page 81 (Chapter 5), he explains that the 144,000 are chosen by God, and that we should not test God, wondering if we are one of the chosen, but should live as though we were certain we were one of the chosen.

On page 85 (Chapter 6), he says that because “144,000” is interpreted by almost all Biblicists as a literal number, some pastors/leaders of large churches want to interpret it differently. He implies that if their church numbers more than 144,000, then the extras won’t be going to heaven, and since the pastors/leaders know this, they interpret things differently (incorrectly) so everyone thinks they will be going.

On page 443 (Chapter 33), he says that in a short period of time after WWII, the seal must be placed on “the 144,000 saints who will go up to heaven alive.” World War Three will not begin until after all 144,000 are sealed, and if you do not have the seal, even if you are one of the elect, you will die either in disasters or in the war.

On page 445-447 (Chapter 33), he says that the Seventh-day Adventists also believe the 144,000 will go to heaven alive, but since they believed the last days started in 1844, and everyone alive in 1844 is dead now, then they must have been wrong in their timing. He says the sealing did not start in 1844 as the Seventh-day Adventists believe, but it started after World War Two.

On page 447-449 (Chapter 33), he says that the “blood of the Passover Lamb” (keeping the Passover) is the seal that is required to escape the last plagues and enter heaven.

According to all these statements and interpretations, we can get a picture of Ahnsahnghong’s view of the 144,000, but I still have questions:

--My sister told me that the 144,000 will not be the only ones saved and going to heaven. If the church is teaching that the 144,000 are not the only ones to be saved, then that sounds like a contradiction. What are they actually teaching now, and is it the same as what Ahnsahnghong taught?

--If the 144,000 are specially chosen and you can’t know if you are one of the chosen but should live as though you are, that means that there can be people who follow all God’s laws, keep all the feasts, and keep the Passover so they can have the seal, and still not be one of the “chosen”. What about John 1:12 which says, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name,” and John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (Emphasis mine) How sad to be told that if you do ALL the church requires you will be spared from the last plagues, only to find out that you might not be saved from those plagues after all.

--WWII ended in 1945 and WWIII hasn’t happened yet, so according to Ahnsahnghong, we are in the last days and the 144,000 are currently being sealed? And according to him, if the church has more than 144,000 members, some of them will not be going to heaven with them. The church website says that they have 1 million members, and that they reached 200,000 members back in 1999. If only 144,000 are being taken to heaven alive, what is the church teaching will happen to the rest? Do they die in the end disasters and plagues and then join the others in heaven? Or do they just die in the end disasters and plagues and tough luck, no heaven for them? Or...?

The Proof--Remember This!

We can argue back and forth about whether the World Mission Society Church of God is God’s true church and our only salvation, or a church that brings destruction, preaches falsehood, and gives worship to an ordinary man and woman.

Fortunately, the WMSCOG has given us a way to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, whether it is the true church or not. It may take some time before it happens, but rest assured, something will happen one day and the truth will be known to all.

The position of the WMSCOG is that Mother Jerusalem (Zahng Gil-Jah) will not die. And those church members who celebrate the Passover will have the seal of God protecting them from harm, so they also will not die from the plagues and destruction that will come to the earth. Mother Jerusalem and her followers will all go straight to heaven alive, so says the WMSCOG.

I was told by a knowledgeable church member who was very certain of this, that if “Mother God” (Zahng Gil-Jah) dies it will show that it was a false church after all. My sister and other WMSCOG members have confirmed this, though of course they are certain it won’t happen that way.

So here is the proof (and I’m sure I’m not the only one who has brought this up):

In a matter of time, one of two things will happen…
1) Mother Jerusalem and all her church members will in some way disappear from the earth when they all go to heaven together – or –
2) Mother Jerusalem will die as all humans do, and her church will be left here without her.

If #1 happens, we will know it was the true church.
If #2 happens, we will know it was a false church.

If #1 happens, as our WMSCOG friends are certain it will, then they have nothing to worry about, and the rest of us will rely on the mercy of God.

If #2 happens, as the rest of us expect it will, I fervently pray that all the church followers will wake up and not take any excuses from the church leadership. It will have already proven itself to be false, so do NOT let your church leaders try to convince you otherwise with statements like these:
--She has gone ahead to prepare a place for you and will return to get those who remain faithful.
--She wanted to allow more time for more brothers and sisters to come to faith, but her earthly body couldn’t survive any longer.
--She has left (insert name here) to be in charge until she returns.
--She has introduced you to the “Heavenly Daughter”, or some other member of a god-family, who will continue her work. (If there is a trinity of the male god —father, son, and holy spirit— why not make up a trinity of the female god —mother, daughter, and who-knows-what.)

Also, beware of these tactics which may be used to cover up the death of “Mother” (Zahng Gil-Jah):
--She goes into “seclusion” and does not wish to see any visitors any more.
--She only seen by recorded message, not live.
--Or (heaven forbid!) she knows she is going to die and asks all her faithful followers to die with her (aka —drink the kool-aid together). She might tell everyone that they must shed their earthly bodies so they can get new ones in heaven —their souls will go to heaven alive, after all….

These are only a few of the things that could be said by the church leaders to try to recover from being exposed as a false church. I expect there is also a chance the church could splinter into groups that think the WMSCOG had things almost right and try to repair the damage, but the truth will remain—when “Mother’s” body dies, she will be exposed as a false prophet. Neither she nor her teachings, and neither Ahnshanghong nor his teachings (since he’s the one who pointed to her), are to be trusted.

So my message to my sister (and our other loved ones) is this:
If we cannot agree about the church, then let’s agree to disagree for now. BUT should Mother Jerusalem die, please remember that your family has always loved you. Please take the open door that God has given you and be set free from the enemy’s deception. Come back and be restored to your family who has missed you and loves you still.

What is the Seal?

The WMSCOG talks a lot about all the dreadful things that are happening these days--earthquakes, typhoons, fires, floods, hurricanes, epidemics, attacks.... They make it all sound so frightening, and then tell you about a special way you can be protected from all these things--by getting the "seal of God" through celebrating the Passover. After all, they say, whenever the Israelites kept the Passover they were protected, and when they did not keep the Passover, they were not protected.

In my last post I looked at whether the Bible supports that claim about the Passover always providing protection to the Israelites, and it turned out the answer is NO.

But if keeping the Passover does not get you the seal of God, then are there any other clues in the Bible about what does?

How about these verses:

2 Cor. 1:21-22
Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.

Eph. 1:13-14
In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Eph. 4:30-32
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.  And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

From these verses, we see that the Holy Spirit seals us to show we belong to Him when we believe, not after we perform a certain ceremony or finally acheive a perfect life. In Eph. 4, Paul says the people were already sealed before they were able to get rid of bitterness, rage, anger, etc. They weren't perfect, yet they were sealed as belonging to God. That gives me hope.

Is Passover the Seal of God?

Well, I might as well tell you right off--from everything I've learned, the evidence shows that Ahnsahnghong is NOT the second coming Christ, "Mother Jerusalem" (Zahng Gil-Ja) is not God either because her claim is based on his, and the World Mission Society Church of God (which I'll refer to as the WMSCOG or COGWMS) is full of contradictions in their doctrine and practice. I'll share with you reasons why I've come to that conclusion, but if anyone wants to share with me new information to change my mind, feel free...

First of all, it's Passover season. The Passover will be celebrated on March 29 around the world by the Jewish people (and some Christian churches also). The WMSCOG talks about all the disasters and plagues that are happening in the world, and that to be safe, you must keep the Passover because it will give you God's seal of protection.

If you do the WMSCOG study about the Passover as the seal of God, they will tell you that throughout the history of the Israelites you can see how every time they celebrated the Passover, God protected them. And when they did not keep the Passover, they were not protected.

They use 2 examples, the original Passover in Egypt and the Passover during the reign of Hezekiah.

In Exodus, when God sent the plague of the death of the firstborn, the Israelites who kept the Passover were “passed over” by the death angel. The Egyptians who did not keep the Passover were struck by this plague. This was the very first Passover (Exodus 12).

Then in 2 Chronicles 30, they’ll show you how King Hezekiah celebrated the Passsover in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, while the Northern Kingdom of Israel scorned them and would not keep the Passover. Then they take you to 2 Kings 18 & 19 and tell you that the Northern Kingdom of Israel was conquered and taken captive because they did not keep the Passover, but since the Southern Kingdom of Judah did keep the Passover they were not destroyed even though they were a much smaller kingdom.

Here’s the problem—If the Passover was the key to protection from God, it should be clearly represented as so throughout the Bible and history with many examples. It’s clear with the original Passover that God was distinguishing His people from the Egyptians. And we could make a good case that God protected King Hezekiah and Kingdom of Judah, but it may have been because of their love and obedience to the Lord and may not necessarily be a direct result of the Passover.

But what about the other times the Israelites kept the Passover? Do we see God’s protection on them because of it? I wanted to find all the occurrences of Passover mentioned in the Bible to check it out…

Exodus 12 – This is the original Passover when the Israelites were delivered from Egypt, and also gives some restrictions on who may celebrate the Passover.

Exodus 34 – God gives Moses some commandments for His people, and the Passover is among them.

Leviticus 23 – Here are directions for celebrating the feasts of God, including Passover.

Numbers 9 – This is the first anniversary of the Passover, and the Israelites celebrate as God directed them. God also gives Moses an alternative date to celebrate for those who were unclean. There is no mention about what it may have protected them from this time.

Numbers 28 – Directions for the Passover offerings are here.

Numbers 33 – This just mentions that the Israelites left Egypt the day after the Passover, as a review of their history.

Deuteronomy 16 – Here are more directions for celebrating the Passover.

Joshua 5 – This is the first celebration of the Passover in the Promised Land, with Joshua as leader, just before battle of Jericho. They won this battle, but was this a direct result of the Passover? Could be, but I think it was more of a fulfillment of God’s promise to give them the land.

2 Kings 23, and 2 Chronicles 35 – King Josiah celebrated the Passover. There is no mention of any special case of protection for the Israelites. And what happened to King Josiah? He died in a battle.

2 Chronicles 30 – King Hezekiah celebrates the Passover. This is the example of protection the WMSCOG uses.

Ezra 6 – The exiles celebrated the Passover when they returned to Jerusalem. They were able to rebuild despite opposition. Does this mean they were protected by the Passover?

And finally, Ezekiel 45 – This passage give directions about offerings to celebrate the Passover.

That’s it for the Old Testament. Only 6 distinct Passover celebrations are mentioned. And only 2 of those examples can show a comparison between a group who kept the Passover and a group who did not. Those are the 2 examples the WMSCOG uses (the Passover in Egypt and King Hezekiah’s Passover). Of other 4 occurrences:
--The 1st anniversary Passover makes no mention at all of a battle success or any other protection.
--Joshua won the battle of Jericho after his Passover but we don’t see what would have happened to any of them who didn’t celebrate it, so it’s hard to make a clear comparison.
--King Josiah’s Passover did not protect him personally in battle.
--The exiles celebrated the Passover, and as far as we know, Israel continued keeping the Passover from then until the time of Jesus. BUT they weren’t protected from being conquered and occupied by the Romans.

We also know that throughout the book of Judges, the Israelites experienced many cycles of falling away from the Lord and being handed over to their enemies, then returning to the Lord and finding relief from their enemies, only to fall away again. If the Passover were the key commandment to gaining God’s protection and favor, wouldn’t we expect to see it in the book of Judges with the Israelites keeping the Passover, neglecting it, and then celebrating it again? Instead, God hands them over to their enemies because they’ve done evil by following other gods, and then sends relief through a judge because He has compassion on them. There’s NO mention of Passover at all in the entire book of Judges. It’s nicely summed up in Judges 2:11-19. So apparently celebrating the Passover is not as important as worshiping God alone.

How about the New Testament…does what we learn there show that the Passover provides God’s protection? Here are the mentions of Passover in the New Testament:

Matthew 26; Mark 14; Luke 22; John 11, 12, 13, 18, 19 – These are all referring to the Passover at the time of the Last Supper and Jesus’ crucifixion.

Luke 2; John 2, 4, 6 – These chapters all mention other Passovers during the time of Jesus.

Acts 12:4 – Herod intends to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover, but the night before the trial an angel releases him from prison. Did Peter celebrate the Passover while he was in prison? Unlikely, but he probably did keep the Passover in other years.

1 Corinthians 5:7 – This compares Jesus to the lamb of the Passover.

Hebrews 11:28 – This verse mentions Moses’ faith in keeping the original Passover.

So Jesus kept the Passover but He was not protected from crucifixion, though we know that He was destined to die for the sins of us all. The Jews in general kept the Passover at this time in history (and until today), and they were not protected from the Romans (think of the destruction of Jerusalem in the 1st century), but you might make the case that they did not believe in Jesus and therefore lost the protection.

But what about Jesus’ disciples, who we know both believed in Him and kept the Passover? All but one of them were martyred. They were NOT protected.

My conclusion:
From studying the Passover through the Bible and history, there is no consistent connection between the act of celebrating the Passover and having God’s protection. The WMSCOG claim--that whenever the Israelites kept the Passover they were protected and that when they did not celebrate the Passover they were not protected--is FALSE.