Revealing Jesus
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Revealing Jesus
Revealing Jesus
Revelation is a strange book, nearly as strange as some of its readers.
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,
who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw.
Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
“People have found in Revelation a dramatic account of the cosmic struggle of the church against the satan, a powerful consolation that God will one day end all suffering, a timetable for the end times, a mirror of the tyrants and turmoil of their own day, or – in many cases – a montage of pictures that they simply do not understand.”
Revelation “of” Jesus
Not primarily revelation of a timetable
Not primarily revelation of other powers / kingdoms
Primarily, the revelation, revealing of Jesus Christ
Why was this important to the early Church? Why did God send this Revelation to John at that time? Imagine… 100AD… Imagine…2020
Post-resurrection, somewhere between 60-100AD
Looked like nothing much had changed
God says: come up here - see what I see
Rev 4:1 - After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”
Jesus send the message via an angel: showing a connection between Heaven and Earth.
Heaven and Earth collide in Revelation
Temptation when trials hit to want to escape from Earth to Heaven (Gnostics: separation between natural and supernatural)
Revelation reveals an intimate connection between events in Heaven and Earth, culminating in their coming together at the end
Christianity is a “real” religion - the earth, the body, it all matters to God. Jesus went around healing bodies
Blessing for us this morning :-)
John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne,
and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood
Him who is and who was and who is to come: The Father, e.g. Is 48:12 “Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.
Introduced as the one in charge of history
The seven spirits: Holy Spirit, e.g. Is 11:2 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
Introduced as the fullness of God’s Spirit in operation
Jesus Christ: The Son
Introduced as the key player in the story (becomes apparent)
Faithful Witness
The one who represents God faithfully (if you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father)
The one who was faithful to death. Witness = gk martus —> martyr
Faithful witness= sticking with the mission, and sticking with faithful representation of God, no matter what
Faithful witness= Jesus is who he says he is, his message is true
This Jesus, who you believed in, proved his faithfulness - he lived in the world, just like you, he faced trials, just like you; he was misunderstood and persecuted, just like you; he stayed true to the end and he understands how hard it is. He understands your pain. He understands when it feels like God is not there. And he died because of his message. He stayed faithful to his mission of dying for you, He was faithful to love you, no matter the cost. You can depend on Jesus
Firstborn of the Dead
Not only is Jesus faithful, he offers ultimate hope!
Firstborn = first resurrection + preeminent
Firstborn = first of many
No matter what your trial is, Jesus has overcome death and you have resurrection coming
This was particularly pertinent for 1st century Christians where death was a real possibility. I imagine it’s also pretty relevant for Christians in some parts of the world today. But also for us in the comfortable West, we face trials of different kinds. We need resurrection just as much.
What is there left to fear when death itself has been defeated?
Sometimes it feels like we’re in the middle of a Good Friday or Easter Saturday, but because Jesus is the firstborn of the dead, we know that Sunday’s coming!
Ruler of Kings on Earth
Through Jesus’ faithfulness on the cross, his death and resurrection, he is now ascended above every other power.
Like much of the rest of the book of Revelation, (and what we see around us in the 21st century), where we see events on the earth that look like Jesus is not in charge, God now invites us to see the bigger picture. He’s inviting us into a kingdom reality where Jesus is in charge.
This is what we’re doing in the SoKM classes - learning to see the world through a lens where Jesus is the King. And because Jesus is King, then God’s will is done on Earth as his kingdom breaks in.
and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood
and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Because he didn’t just save us from something - he also saved us for something
He is the faithful witness who loves us (notice the present tense), and freed us from our sins (past tense)
And he made us to be a kingdom, priests to his God and Father. In other words, we live in this world where there are earthly kings and rulers - some corrupt, some good - but actually we are citizens of another kingdom altogether. A kingdom with different rules - a kingdom of love, righteousness, peace and joy - a kingdom where sickness and tears are no more, a kingdom where even death has been defeated.
So when everything around you looks all wrong, remember that this isn’t it. You are a resurrected king-priest, with full access to the heavenly Father, invited to partner with Him in bringing Heaven to Earth.
One day everyone will see Jesus - what a privilege it is to see him now.
Begin this week with the end in mind. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”