Accessing the Promise and Power of the Key of David (Held by Christ) to Enter into the Rest of the Lord by Faith, Repentance, and Grace

[ParkerD]

This thread is being written to not continue off topic from a conversation that came about during another thread about the nature of God. It is to differentiate between the key of David (as prophesied by Isaiah in Isaiah 22:20-23 and by John in Revelation 3:7) and the keys of the kingdom, and to explore the meaning of reconciliation and rest in the context of Hebrews 4:11-16 as relates to John 20:21-23.

Here are those four passages of scripture from the Bible, KJV:

Isaiah 22:20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah:
21 And I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.
22 And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
23 And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father’s house.

Revelation 3:7 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

Hebrews 4:11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

John 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:
23 Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

Isaiah 22:23 shows that that passage is a prophecy about the mission of the Lord, Jesus Christ, who was nailed to a cross with a “nail in a sure place.” He is the holder of the key of David, and because of that He is able to access the “glorious throne to his father’s house” for those who “come boldly unto the throne of grace.”

Those who “come boldly unto the throne of grace” will be following the steps that the Savior sent the apostles forth to teach about: gaining faith in Christ and the power of His redemption and resurrection, repenting of sins committed, being baptized unto repentance, and receiving the Holy Ghost to receive sanctifying grace and enter into the “rest of the Lord.”

The apostles were given authority and keys necessary to be able to bring people to the point of receiving the Holy Ghost and then to keep teaching them to “observe all things whatsoever (the Lord their God has commanded).” (Matthew 28:19-20) That authority meant they would be able, through the Holy Ghost, to discern when a person was ready to be baptized and thus be granted “entrance” into the kingdom of God on earth by being received into the church. They would also be able to discern when a person was no longer sincere in keeping their covenant of baptism to the point of being a danger to the other members of the church (a wolf in sheep’s clothing) and needing to be “loosed” from their membership in the church, so that their baptism was no longer 'bound in heaven."

The apostles gave the authority to baptize to many other worthy men, and they followed the teachings and followed the needful practice of seeking the inspiration of the Holy Ghost to know when a person was ready for baptism. The keys of that authority were held by the apostles, and the authority for performing baptisms could be given to those reporting to them.

Repentance meant that a person was ready to become a “new creature” and enter into the “rest of the Lord” through the process of their repentance, their baptism, and receiving the Holy Ghost and then living by their covenants to continue to access the “throne of grace”. Their reconciliation came directly through Christ, through a personal and ongoing relationship with Him that began with their faith and first steps of repentance, then continued after baptism with continued repentance and “coming boldly to the throne of grace.”

Peace to all. Have a wonderful day.

 

[ParkerD]

Note to reader:

Since I had written this thread in response to Jay53 specifically and also to allow for Lax16 and Arandur to have this as a general reply to them as well and not go off topic on the other thread, I have thought best to go ahead and provide this “bump” to this thread.

 

[Prodigal_Son1]

In my opinion, you’re taking typology and calling it prophecy.

Using the typology, we understand the mindset of the Apostles when Christ gave the keys to the kingdom of heaven to Peter, along with the authority to bind and loose on earth, with a promise it would be bound and loosed in heaven. This was with Christ’s authority, He opens and shuts, through authority given to His Church. Peter is like the keyholder to the house of David, only he holds the key to Christ’s kingdom.

 

[Jay53]

I’m not sure how this was a response to me. I had asked about John 20:21-23 which you mention in your post, but don’t really explain.

I think someone else told me that LDS believe that their apostles do have the power to forgive peoples’ sins, but they don’t usually utilize this power - they believe their job is more to show a person the way to repentance. I’ll see if I can find that post.

 

[Jay53]

Here’s the post I was thinking of: (answers were from zerinus)

Originally Posted by Jay53
Do Mormon bishops and stake presidents have the authority to forgive sins?

No, they don’t; but they do have the priesthood and spiritual authority to guide the sinner through the process of repentance, and the discernment to know by the Holy Spirit when the person’s sins are forgiven. Forgiveness comes only through the process of repentance. There is no forgiveness without repentance. The most important thing that a minister of the gospel can do for a sinner is not to “forgive” him; but to guide him through the process of repentance so that he can be forgiven by the Lord.

Quote:
Do Mormon Apostles have the authority to forgive sins?

Yes they do; but it is not a privilege that they exercise very often. The right way for a sinner is not to go to an Apostle to be forgiven by him; but to go to his bishop who can guide him through repentance as described above.

Post #164. forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=408069&highlight=repentance&page=11

 

[ParkerD]

Here’s the post I was thinking of: (answers were from Zerinus)

Post #164. forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=408069&highlight=repentance&page=11

Jay53,
I agree with what Zerinus wrote.

LDS apostles often emphasize that a person will receive a personal feeling in their heart that they have been forgiven by God as they repent sincerely. Except for major sins, repentance within LDS practice is done personally and privately (sometimes involving asking the forgiveness of someone else also), through prayer and meditation. This is what leads to a change of heart and a change of behavior for the future–the mighty change that is part of spiritual rebirth.

Major sins do oblige an LDS person to confess such to their bishop, and the bishop decides if the matter needs some kind of constraint regarding their membership in the church or partaking of communion. He then helps the person move toward personal repentance and being forgiven by God, but God does the forgiving and if the person’s membership is brought into question then a letter of explanation is sent to the apostles and they review cases where a person’s membership is brought into question by what they did and how it affected others. So the “loosing” keys are held by the apostles, and exercised by them in that regard. But most sins don’t require that action, and the idea of the gospel is that people progress through repentance and change in their daily lives with major sins not being a part of that after their baptism.

I hope this has clarified somewhat.

 

[Jay53]

Jay53,
I agree with what Zerinus wrote.

LDS apostles often emphasize that a person will receive a personal feeling in their heart that they have been forgiven by God as they repent sincerely. Except for major sins, repentance within LDS practice is done personally and privately (sometimes involving asking the forgiveness of someone else also), through prayer and meditation. This is what leads to a change of heart and a change of behavior for the future–the mighty change that is part of spiritual rebirth.

Major sins do oblige an LDS person to confess such to their bishop, and the bishop decides if the matter needs some kind of constraint regarding their membership in the church or partaking of communion. He then helps the person move toward personal repentance and being forgiven by God, but God does the forgiving and if the person’s membership is brought into question then a letter of explanation is sent to the apostles and they review cases where a person’s membership is brought into question by what they did and how it affected others. So the “loosing” keys are held by the apostles, and exercised by them in that regard. But most sins don’t require that action, and the idea of the gospel is that people progress through repentance and change in their daily lives with major sins not being a part of that after their baptism.

I hope this has clarified somewhat.

Yes, somewhat, but obviously I disagree with the LDS interpretation of Jesus’ words. I still don’t understand why LDS don’t accept this gift or utilize it. (I have my own theory on that, of course, but I don’t know how the LDS see it.)

Jesus clearly gave the authority to forgive sins to His apostles and their successors. Since I have experienced this gift from God firsthand I know His words to be true.

Have a good day!

 

[ParkerD]

Fair enough. I don’t always have time to answer things, especially when topics heat up and I get overextended with responses.

Placing one’s own personal interpretation of Scripture up as an absolute, absent the appropriate authority of the Spirit guaranteed through an authoritative teaching body (the Church), is exactly what has lead to the many divisions of Christianity. It is a false method, one warned against in the Scriptures themselves. It is an example of pride, making oneself God by declaring one’s own interpretation as truth.

And I have not seen where John or anyone else has interpreted that passage the same way, reading so much into one short passage to the exclusion of its immediate context and excluding all other meanings rather than recognizing the deep, “both/and,” multi-layered nature of Scripture.

Of course Scripture contains truth. Peter was given the “Keys of the Kingdom.” This is the same as the Key of David. It takes nothing from a king’s (Christ’s) glory to delegate authority, nor does it put that king under the delegate’s authority. Isaiah is not primarily focused on the atonement of Christ in ch. 20. Unless you think Eliakim, the immediate referent of the passage, was our atoning savior.

 

[ParkerD]

Arandur,
The method you described in gaining an understanding of the Bible, leads of course to everyone in the world having to “accede” to the pope and the college of cardinals and say that they are the only ones who can really say what the Bible means. This gives them exactly the kind of power that it would seem the leaders at the time of the Nicene counsel perceived was necessary in order to take hold of the church doctrine and not keep having schisms.

The idea that any reading of the Bible that doesn’t accept what the early fathers had to say or what the pope has to say, is “prideful” is absolutely foreign to the Biblical teachings about seeking revealed knowledge. (See 1 Corinthians 2 and 3).

No wonder Luther pulled away from that kind of doctrinal infallibility as a foundation for gaining knowledge of the Bible. It is exactly why John had the vision he had that there was going to be a departure of the church into the wilderness, and that the dragon would be making war with those seeking to keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation 12:16-17)

Having a testimony of Jesus is the focal point of the Bible. The idea that the words “a nail in a sure place” is not talking about the crucifixion, when placed in conjunction with the key of David when it is known that Christ fulfills Davidic prophecies, is still amazing to me that any student of the Bible doesn’t see the connection. It doesn’t mean I have pride. It means I can read and put some verses together and see their connection.

The “Keys of the Kingdom” is not the same as the “key of David.” You can say it is the same, the early fathers can say it is the same (to their advantage, of course)–but the Bible does not equate the two sets of keys.

Christ couldn’t delegate the atonement. Just because Peter was crucified also doesn’t mean he was taking upon himself our sins. (I assume you know that.)

I assume you are aware that the name “Eliakim” means “God shall cause to arise.” This goes right along with John’s vision about the key of David. We can arise in resurrection and can arise in a new birth because of the Savior’s atoning sacrifice and His resurrection and triumph over death.

Note in Revelation 3:5 that the vision John has shows that the Person who is talking and saying “I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels” in that verse is the same Person who is “he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;”

This is not a reference to Peter. It is a clear reference to Christ as the One who said “I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” (Revelation 1:17-18)

The Key of David is the same thing as the “keys of hell and of death”. This is why the opening and shutting can’t be done by a “man”. It can only be done by Christ, who suffered the atonement and crucifixion so He could open those gates with His key–the Key of David, which was laid “upon his shoulder” and the “government” will be “committed into his hand.” (Isaiah 22:21)

Those words I just cited ought to bring immediately to mind the passage a student of the Bible ought to love–“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom,…” (Isaiah 9:6, 7)

Peace to you and all. Have a good day.