Parent: JesusWordsOnly
The Salvation
Message of Revelation Is Straight From the Parable of the SowerNext, Jesus in Revelation once more states His core salvation theology. Jesus does this by reproving or commending each church by the criteria that Jesus used in the Parable of the Sower. This is done ever so subtly. Thus, many commentators miss this.
There are some who left their first love. (Rev. 2:4). They correspond to the second seed that starts with joy. This seed "believes for a while" but in time of temptation falls away. (Luke 8:13). In Revelation, these do not "produce to completion" because of incomplete works. (Rev. 3:2.)
Then there are believers at another church who are neither hot nor cold but lukewarm. Jesus explains why: "Because thou sayest, I am rich, and have gotten riches, and have need of nothing." (Rev. 3:17.) These correspond to the third seed which was choked not only by the cares of this world, but also by "riches and pleasures" of this life. Thus, they did not produce to the end. (Luke 8:14.)
Yet, there is one church and one seed that is viewed as on the right path.
This is the church of Philadelphia which compares to the fourth seed in the Parable of the Sower. The church at Philadelphia is told "I know thy works," and as a result a door is in front of them that no one can shut. (Rev. 3:8). This church has very little "power" left, but "did keep my word, and did not deny my name." (Rev. 3:8 .) This corresponds to the fourth seed which "in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, hold it fast, and bring forth fruit with patience." (Luke 8:15 .) There is an unmistakable parallelism between "keep my word" (Rev. 3:8 ) and "hold it fast" (Luke 8:15 ) as well as "thy works" (Rev. 3:8 ) and "bring forth fruit...." (Luke 8:15)
Thus, Jesus has made re-appear in the Book of Revelation all the criteria for assessing the saved seed versus these lost seeds from his Parable of the Sower. Why?
Precisely because there is no more difficult passage for a Paulunist to explain in the Synoptic Gospels on salvation than the Parable of the Sower. Jesus in the Book of Revelation invokes the Sower Parable obviously to rebuff Paul's message that faith alone saves, and works matter not at all. In the Sower Parable, those whose faith died, who fell in times of temptation, or whose works were incomplete were lost. Only the one who produces fruit to the end with endurance was saved in the Parable of the Sower. (Eph. 2:8-9) is thus dead on arrival when you let Jesus teach you in the Parable of the Sower. As a result, when this completely anti-Pauline message in the Parable of the Sower appears again in the Book of Revelation, Jesus' purpose is evident.
What About Grace?
This is doubly-evident because Jesus at the same time in Revelation ignores the word grace. Because Paul previously made this his most often used term to explain salvation (Rom. 3:24; 4:4, 16, 5:2, 15, 17, 20, 21; 6:1, 14, 15; 11:5-6; 12:3, 6; Gal. 1:16; 2:21; 5:4; Eph. 2:5, 8; Titus 2:11, 3:7), Jesus' later prophecy of Revelation has a not-so-subtle message. If Paul's doctrine were true, why does Jesus implicitly teach in Revelation that Paul's version of grace-teaching deserves no attention? Jesus' focus is to remind us of the criteria for salvation from the Parable of the Sower. His most often used exhortation to the churches in Revelation is repent, do the same works you did at first, obey, etc. In Revelation, grace is only mentioned in simple greetings by Apostle John. (Rev. 1:4; 22:21). By its use, John merely means mercy.
This does not cast in doubt the canonicity of Revelation. For Jesus in His earthly ministry never once taught Paul's doctrine of grace. The word grace never once is uttered by Jesus in any of the four gospels! Nor did Jesus use in a theological sense the word grace grace theology, as Paul explained it, had no place in Jesus' teachings. In Jesus' teachings on salvation, we find forgiveness and justification were always based upon repentance from sin, turning to God in faith, and staying on the path of obedience, e.g., you had to thereafter forgive others. (Parable of the Publican and Pharisee; Parable of the Unmerciful Servant; Parable of the Prodigal Son. See also, (Mark 9:42-47).)