chapter 1. We'll be focusing on verses 4 to 6. God willing, we'll return to Deuteronomy next Wednesday night. I do want to read chapter 1 and make a few observations and then we'll get right into the text, verses 4 to 6.
So I'll begin at verse 1 in chapter 1. the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him to show his servants, things which must shortly take place. And he sent and signified it by his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ to all things that he saw. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near. John, to the seven churches which 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 from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth,
Redemption Through the Blood of the Lamb
to him who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and has made us kings and priests to his God and father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever, Amen. Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last. And what you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches, which are in Asia, to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.
Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned, I saw seven golden lampstands. And in the midst of the seven lampstands, one like the son of man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes like a flame of fire.
His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and his voice is the sound of many waters. He had in his right hand seven stars. Out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead.
But he laid his right hand on me, saying to me, do not be afraid. I am the first and the last. I am he who lives and was dead. And behold, I am alive forevermore.
Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of death. Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this. The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands.
The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches. Amen.
Introduction: Why Revelation Matters
Well, there are unfortunately some Christians who avoid the book of Revelation. I know that seems odd and zany, but they are out there. And I think at times people think that the book of Revelation is sort of filled with gloom and despair and epic judgment and all those things that we associate with bad feelings, so we try and avoid it. Conversely, there's people that are drawn to the book for those very reasons, because there's a curiosity.
But then there's also Christians, again, not everyone, but some who say the book is too mysterious, it's too confusing, which is really unfortunate, because in verse 1, it is said, it is the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave Him to show His servants things which must shortly take place. The whole idea of the book of Revelation is to reveal, it is to demonstrate, it is to highlight, it is to set forth specifically Christ in all of His glory and majesty and power. Well, there are, as I said, those approaches. It's filled with doom, it's filled with gloom, it's filled with epic judgment, so we'll just avoid it.
Or it's so mysterious and it's so difficult to interpret, we'll avoid it for that cause as well. But it's important that we remember that the book of Revelation was written to real Christians living in real places, occupying real space in history. In fact, when you drop down to verse 11, when John is given his commission, it is said that what you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia, to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea. Some interpreters teach that those churches represent ages in the history of the church.
No, there are local churches in Asia Minor in the first century. In fact, if you follow those particular pattern, you'll see it's basically a circle. That's the geography. That's the outlying area.
There are real people occupying real space in real time and in real history. The book was written to deal with the various issues that Christians face. For instance, tribulation and poverty. Revelation chapter 2 verses 9 and 10.
The people of God unfortunately suffer Tribulation. Very often they suffer poverty. As well, the book is written to deal with the issue of the imperial cult. In chapter 2, verse 13, Pergamos is located where Satan's throne is.
Probably a reference to the imperial cult. The Roman emperor was looked at as lord and savior. And he had an entourage, or he had a cult, that promoted the worship of Caesar. Pergamos was situated in a place where that cult worship, or that emperor worship, was very strong and very lively.
As well, it was written to combat the influence of heresy. In each of the churches, or in a couple of the churches, there are doctrinal heresies indicated. Those things affect the people of God. We need to be on our guard.
We need to be watchful. We need to be prayerful. As well, doctrinal compromise. Each of the seven letters in chapters two and three and with an exhortation, a blessing pronounced upon those who overcome.
You need to persevere. You need to overcome. You mustn't shrink back. You must not fall prey to either the imperial cult, or to doctrinal heresy, or to Judaism, or any competitor to the glory of Christ.
That's why in Revelation 21 verse 8, when we're given a view of who is in the lake of fire, cowards are indicated there. Cowards in Revelation 21.8 are not people who are afraid of lions and tigers and bears. Cowards in Revelation 21.8 are those who did not overcome, those who did not persevere, those who did not press on to the very end. They are cowards.
But not only within the life of the local church are the Christian people taught, there are various issues plaguing them, but there is political oppression. There's a lot of competing theories on who the beast is in Revelation chapter 13. verses 1 to 10. Most people agree that it's some sort of a political entity. So whatever your particular interpretation of the beast, the idea is clear.
The people of God are oppressed by political powers. They are oppressed by those things that are above them. And as well, there is religious oppression. Again, the imperial cult, other competitors.
And then also, the people of God are taught how to deal with weeping, death, sorrow, and pain in the book of Revelation. I hope I'm wetting your appetite to see how good and practical this book is. Very often when we want to know how to live as Christians, we go to Ephesians, or we go to Colossians, or we go to Philippians, and that's not wrong, but we ought to go to the book of Revelation as well. It is practical.
It is for us. It is calculated to promote in us perseverance, a constant look to Christ, and a constant faithfulness in His service. Revelation 21.4, we are told that in the New Jerusalem there will be no more weeping, there will be no more death, there will be no more sorrow, and there will be no more pain. We are to infer from that, that while we're not in the New Jerusalem, there is weeping, there is death, there is sorrow, and there is pain.
Those are the things clearly indicated in the book of Revelation. Add to this the common garden variety struggles that every Christian in every age always has to deal with. Our own remaining sin. Job issues. family issues, relationship issues, difficulties playing and affecting the people of God.
There is no shortage, no scarcity of difficulty in this lower world. And the book of Revelation was written to aid those real Christians who were facing real issues by setting forth the Lord Jesus Christ in all of His glory and majesty." That's what I want us to understand about the book of Revelation. Anyone who has dipped their toe and waded into this particular book realizes there's a whole host of theories on how to interpret it. There's a whole host of ways on how to deal with the thousand years mentioned in Revelation 20.
But I think what is most important is that we as God's people realize the practical import of this book to help us in difficulty, to help us in trial, to help us in sorrow, to help us in pain. And one of the means by which the author does this is to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ. And he does that at the very outset in this greeting in verses 4 to 6.
The Triune God: Source of Grace and Peace
So I want to look at, first of all, the triune God as the source of grace and peace, verses 4 and 5. Notice then, secondly, we'll look at the threefold office of Jesus Christ, and then thirdly, we'll look at the work of Jesus Christ. So at the outset, In this greeting to the churches, there is so much theology and so much Christology. Again, it is designed to promote in us a hopefulness and an encouragement and a zeal to live the Christian life, even in the midst of the trials and the perplexities and the difficulties that we face.
And if you haven't surmised yet, this is in no small way connected to the events of yesterday. We need to be encouraged with the glory of Jesus Christ in all seasons and in all times. But of course, political events in our own situation are probably foremost and are heavy in our minds. I think that the book of Revelation offers a helpful antidote to deal with those various issues.
Notice first the triune God as source of grace and peace. John, verse 4, two of the seven churches which are in Asia, again, these are specific local churches in specific cities in the first century in Asia Minor. We cannot forget that. Again, some people have taken these seven churches and say they represent various eras in the history of the church.
That would have had absolutely zero relevance to John's audience. It would have had absolutely zero impact upon John's audience to hear that this is what's going to happen at the time of Charlemagne, this is what's going to happen at the time of Hitler, this is what's going to happen at the time of whatever. No, what we find here are real churches in a real place needing real encouragement.
Grace and Peace for a Suffering Church
John to the seven churches which are in Asia, notice, grace to you and peace. That is what we need as Christians. We need God's grace, and we need peace. This is a customary greeting in the several epistles in the New Testament.
In times of trial, in times of tribulation, in times of difficulty, along with times of goodness and joy and happiness, God's people always stand in need of grace and peace. We are what we are by the grace of God. You ever made that statement, but for the grace of God, there go I? We cannot take that sentiment lightly.
It is a reality. If God were to remove from us His grace, not that He would do so for the true believer, if He did though, however, we would be destroyed. We stand in need of grace. How do we face political oppression?
How do we face beasts? How do we face religious pressure? How do we face doctrinal compromise and heresy? We need God's grace.
We need peace from on high. Peace to steady us. Peace to stabilize us. As Christians, in the midst of trial and tribulation, we need to be composed.
We need to be those who are in control, not in the sense of sovereignty, but we can't freak out. If the whole world around us is collapsing, we as God's people need to demonstrate there is something different about the child of God. Remember that statement of Peter in 1 Peter 3 in verse 15. He tells us that we need to always be ready.
He says in 1 Peter 3.15, sanctify the Lord Christ in your hearts and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you with meekness and fear. I think we learn from that that there are those outside the church that will be able to see within the life of a particular believer that he or she has hope. We don't have no hope. We're not hopeless.
We're not to be fretful. We're not to be worrisome. We're not to be anxious. We're not to be paralyzed with fear and trepidation.
We are to step out in grace and peace, having hope from on high. This is absolutely crucial in times of distress that we demonstrate what it is to be a believer, to be a Christian, to be those who are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Notice the source of this grace and peace. This isn't a cheap wish.
This is something that John genuinely wants the people of God to enjoy. The source of this grace and peace is the triune God Himself, the Father, the Spirit, and the Son, indicated in that particular order.
The Father: He Who Is, Was, and Is to Come
I take the first reference here, grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come. I take that as a reference to the Father. This probably harkens back to Exodus chapter 3 verse 14 when God identifies himself as Yahweh, as I am. It probably harkens back to several passages in the prophet Isaiah where God highlights that he is the first and the last.
What are we, as the people of God, supposed to be mindful of in this description of the Father? The eternal, sovereign, glorious God of heaven and earth is the source of grace and peace to his tried, plagued, distressed people on earth. We're to take comfort, we're to take solace, we're to take refuge in him who is and who was and who is to come. Remember the way that Moses describes God, the One who is from everlasting to everlasting in Psalm 90, the Father.
We need to draw nigh unto Him through the Son by the power of the Holy Spirit. The triune God is absolutely crucial. Theology proper, who God is, what He's about, is absolutely crucial for the people of God to face the difficulties. I mean, if you picked up a book today that was written on how to deal with affliction, do you think it would start with the doctrine of God?
Do you think it would start with a description of the Trinity? With the relationship between the person's father, son, and spirit? Many of the books written today calculated to help Christians in affliction bypass the most needful thing. We need God to help us in affliction.
We need to know who He is. We need Father, Son, and Spirit. We need the triune God to come to our aid and to come to our rescue. He describes the Father first, and then secondly, the Spirit.
The Spirit: Seven Spirits Before the Throne
Notice in verse 4, "...and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne." This does not mean that there are seven Holy Spirits. The number seven in the book of Revelation, as the commentators tell us, is the number of completeness. Probably in John's mind is Zechariah chapter 4. The prophet there gets a vision of this lamp, this seven-headed lamp, and there are these tubes that are bringing oil to the lamp.
And what we are to learn is that it's not by might, not by power, but By my spirit, the Lord God accomplishes his particular will. It's important as we approach the Book of Revelation, it is the most Old Testament-ish book in the New Testament. The Book of Revelation is the most Old Testament-ish book in the New Testament. That doesn't mean it has the most quotations, though it does have a lot of quotations from the Old Testament.
But there is imagery. There is allusion. There is in the mind of the Apostle John the Old Testament Scriptures as he writes to these churches in Asia Minor. And this reference to the seven spirits is the spirit of God Most High, the third person of the Trinity.
Notice in chapter 3 verse 1, these things says he who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. Revelation chapter 4 verse 5, And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. And then again in 5.6, And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God. sent out into all the earth.
So it's a reference to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity. So the triune God is the source of grace and peace. 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 notice thirdly, and from Jesus Christ.
Notice. There are ands here.
The Son: Third Person of the Greeting
There is distinction between the persons. There is the Father. There is the Spirit. There is the Son.
Three distinct persons. One divine essence. That is the biblical doctrine, the understanding of the triune God. He is the source of grace and peace.
Again, let's just stop here for a moment and consider books on affliction. No, maybe they do. I haven't looked at a recent book on affliction. I don't know if they start off with the doctrine of God and the inter-Trinitarian relationship.
I suspect they probably don't. There was a man by the name of Francis Bailey. He lived in 1565 to 1631. He wrote a book called The Practice of Piety, directing a Christian how to walk that he may please God.
So it would be a book on the pursuit of holiness. Guess where Bailey starts? In your devotional life? In your quiet time?
In your devotional journal, in your prayer closet? No, he starts with God Most High. Listen to the title of the first chapter, which was about 25 pages. a plain description of the essence and attributes of God out of the Holy Scripture so far as every Christian must competently know and necessarily believe that will be saved. You see, Bailey understood something.
We cannot pursue piety. We cannot pursue holiness. We cannot pursue Christ-likeness without first knowing the triune God. You see, John realizes that we can't combat doctrinal heresy, we can't fight against doctrinal compromise, we certainly can't resist political oppression, and we certainly are no match for death, sorrow, pain, and suffering, unless we first behold our God.
That's the emphasis in this greeting. I encourage you, don't just run through the greetings to get to what you might consider the good stuff. The greeting is the good stuff. We ought not to bypass it.
The Holy Trinity, as our confession of faith says, is the foundation of all our communion with God and comfortable dependence on Him. Again, how do we fight those several difficulties? How do we engage in the trials and tribulations of our generation? It is in comfortable dependence upon God Most High.
It's no accident that John starts here with the Trinity. It's no accident that John starts here by saying grace to you and peace from Him, the Father, the Spirit, and the Son. Boving, we just recently reviewed this information on the Trinity in our study of the Confession, so this might be a little repetitious to some of you, but Boving referred to the church father Athanasius this way. If you remember your church history, there were two men, their names began with A.
Athanasius, good guy. Arius, bad guy. Arius denied the Trinity. Arius has his counterparts in what's called today the Jehovah's Witnesses.
They deny that Jesus Christ is God. They deny the person of the Holy Spirit. That, or their forefather, is Arius. That doesn't mean the Aryan nation that has swastikas and shaves their heads.
This was a man by the name of Arius. He denied the Trinity. He taught that Jesus was subordinate. He taught that Jesus was created.
He taught that there was a time when the Son was not. Now there was the man called Athanasius that fought him. Not physically, I know that's the language that I'm using here. They were doctrinal fights.
Athanasius resisted, Athanasius calculated, Athanasius articulated the truth of the Trinity. And Bovink, a later Reformed theologian, said this concerning Athanasius. He said, Athanasius understood better than any of his contemporaries that Christianity stands or falls with the confession of the deity of Christ and of the Trinity. You see, we don't bypass this greeting.
We don't run into all of the trials that face the church without first being grounded in who God is, Father, Son, and Spirit. He goes on to say, in the confession of the Trinity throbs the heart of the Christian religion. He says, every error results from, or upon deeper reflection may be traced to, a wrong view of this doctrine. That was what Bavinck said about Athanasius.
There was a church father by the name of Gregory. I think it's Natsianzen is the pronunciation. He lived in AD 329 to 390. quite a long life back in those days. He says, no sooner do I conceive of the one than I am illumined by the splendor of the three.
No sooner do I distinguish them than I am carried back to the one. When I think of any one of the three, I think of him as the whole, and my eyes are filled, and the greater part of what I am thinking escapes me. I cannot grasp the greatness of that one so as to attribute a greater greatness to the rest. When I contemplate the three together, I see but one torch and cannot divide or measure out the undivided light." That's just a devotional response to the Trinity.
And this is what John wants his readers to be reminded of. Grace and peace come from the Father, the Spirit, and the Son. Now notice, he then develops what we will call the threefold office of Jesus Christ.
The Threefold Office of Christ
He amplifies. He says, and from Jesus Christ in verse 5, now he makes these three statements concerning Christ.
Christ as Prophet: The Faithful Witness
He says, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. And these three statements correspond to what has been historically known as the three offices of Christ. Christ is a prophet. He reveals the will of God.
Remember that statement in John 118, no man has seen God at any time. But the only begotten Son, the One who is in the bosom of the Father, He has revealed Him. Remember on the Mount of Transfiguration, when Moses and Elijah appear, and Peter and James and John are with the Lord Jesus, what does God say from Heaven? He says, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, and then He says, Hear Him!
He is the great prophet to the church. He is the faithful witness. This is how John describes him here. This will play out big time in the remainder of this particular book.
Christ identifies himself in like manner when speaking to the church in Laodicea. He is the faithful witness. They are not being faithful witnesses. They need to conform to His pattern.
This is a crucial theme in the remainder of the book. The people of God are to be faithful in the midst of all things, as is their Savior. In 2.13, the church in Pergamos is commended for holding fast My name. And in 6.9, the martyrs are described as those who had been slain for the Word of God and for the testimony which they held.
In 1211, the people of God are those who overcame him, the devil, by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. So Jesus, as the faithful witness, is the prophet to the church. He is the one who speaks by his spirit in his word to the churches. His church is to imitate.
His church is to mirror that witness, that faithfulness. Christ is prophet. It's interesting as well that each of these three descriptions comes from Psalm 89. If you're familiar with the Psalter, you'll know that Psalm 89 is the Covenant Psalm.
God makes a covenant. God says that from David there will come one who rules and who reigns. He is the anti-type of David himself. And each of these three descriptions is born out there in Psalm 89.
Again, John has this in his mind. He describes Jesus as faithful witness, highlighting his prophetic role.
Christ as Priest: Firstborn from the Dead
But then notice his priestly office. He calls him the firstborn from the dead. What does the death of Christ suggest? It suggests his sacrifice.
It suggests his atonement. It suggests the fact that he is the priest of God. He is the one who goes and makes intercession for the people, but he goes and he offers sacrifice to the Father on behalf of the people. Now the word firstborn here does not mean first created.
It doesn't mean that at all. David is called firstborn in Psalm 89. Does that mean he was the first king in Israel? No.
Who was the first king in Israel? What's that? Saul. That's right.
What does firstborn mean? It means the great one. It means the preeminent one. In fact, if you look at Psalm 89, the text bears that out.
Psalm 89 verse 27, and I will make him my firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. That is clearly the way firstborn is being used here in the book of Revelation with reference to the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul uses it in a similar manner in Colossians 1, 15 to 18. He is not highlighting Christ as firstborn or first created.
No, he is highlighting Christ as the preeminent one, as the all-glorious one, as the one who creates, as the one who upholds, and as the one who redeems. He is not suggesting for a moment that Jesus is a creature. Rather, the contrary, he is highlighting the fact that Jesus is the preeminent one. G.K.
Beale says, John views Jesus as the ideal Davidic king on an escalated level, whose death and resurrection have resulted in his eternal kingship of his beloved children. And this idea is developed in verse 6. So what John is doing, he mentions the Father, the Spirit, and the Son, and while he's referring to the Son, let me just flush that out a little bit. He is the faithful witness, he is the firstborn from the dead, but then
Christ as King: Ruler Over the Kings
notice thirdly that third office of Christ He is the king. He is the ruler over the kings of the earth. He was crucified and buried, but he rose again and he ascended to the Davidic throne. You can turn to Acts chapter 2.
Again, it's very important that we emphasize this. It's very important that we understand this. It's very important that we realize that John in Revelation 1 is speaking of a present situation. Notice that he doesn't say Jesus is going to be the ruler over the kings of the earth.
There is a time in your horizon when Christ will ascend this place of sovereign authority. That's not what he says. He says that Jesus is the ruler over the kings of the earth. When did Jesus take David's throne?
He took David's throne at his ascension. Notice in Acts 2, after having preached the person and work of the Lord Jesus, he comes to its conclusion. And in Acts 2.29, Peter says, men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David. that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne." Peter is speaking about 2 Samuel 7, he's speaking about Psalm 89.
God had prophesied, God had testified, God had said that from David's seed He would raise up the Christ to sit on His throne. When did this happen? Notice in verse 31, He foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.
Therefore, being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand till I make your enemies your footstool. Therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly." This isn't something that's up for debate. This isn't something that good men differ on.
No, you know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified both Lord and Christ. Christ is prophet. He reveals the will of God to his people. Christ is priest.
He's offered up sacrifice, specifically himself, for the sins of his people, and he intercedes on their behalf. But he is as well king. And this is located in a particular place in this book to encourage the people of God. John says that this is a present reality which should serve to encourage the church in the world.
Do you know that the word throne features about 39 times in the book of Revelation? And that's with reference to Christ. Now I'm talking about the throne of the devil. How in the world did we ever accept this idea that the book of Revelation is gloomy and is doomy and is dismal and is bleak?
It sets forth the supremacy of Jesus Christ. That's the emphasis throughout, from Revelation 1 to Revelation 22. Christ on the throne is to be the focus of the people in the world. While the church on earth is struggling, chapters 2 and 3, we see the travail, we see the difficulty.
John then in chapter 4 gives us a vision of what? throne, where the Lamb of God is. The emphasis and the indication is simply this, that while there is trial, while there is tumult, while there is difficulty on earth, in chapters 2 and 3, the throne in heaven is not shaken. Christ is supreme, Christ is sovereign, Christ gives grace and peace to his suffering church. Now perhaps you noticed this morning, when you woke up, Jesus Christ was still on his wasn't it?
There was no transfer of power in the heavenly court. He wasn't re-elected for a second term. He's not voted out of office. He has absolute authority.
Matthew 28, 18 to 20 is as true on November 8th as it was when Jesus spoke those words to his disciples before his ascension. The preeminence, the primacy, the glory and the majesty of Christ is all as real for us today as it was for John while he himself, notice where John was when he wrote. He was on the island of Patmos. for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus. Now, do not make a mistake here.
Patmos wasn't like Sandals. It wasn't some beach resort community where John spent the latter years of his life engaging in golf. He wasn't, after all, the President of the United States. The island of Patmos was a rock out in the middle of the sea where John was exiled.
History tells us he was ultimately boiled in hot oil to death, is how John met his end. But he was exiled. He was in tribulation. Notice in verse 9, I, John, both your brother and companion, in the tribulation.
But notice, and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ. Tribulation on exile does not render null and void the kingdom of Jesus. Difficulty in the churches in Asia Minor does not invalidate the present reign of Christ. We know that Jesus has his purposes for the trials and the difficulties that plague his people.
He is sovereign. We know, according to Romans 8, that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him, to the called according to His purpose. Now, we take that passage and we interpret it this way. Well, good things God uses for our good.
That's not what the text says. He causes all things to work for good. That means bad things That means hard things, that means tribulation, that means difficulty, that means trial. He overrules those things to work in our lives to learn the lessons that we need to learn so that we can imbibe that patience of Jesus Christ that John highlights there in verse 9.
I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ. This particular statement to the ruler over the kings of the earth in the language of the commentator's suite says the words stand appropriately at the head of a book that represents the glorified Christ as presiding over the destinies of nations. You see, by the time you get to Revelation 13, and you see this beast from the sea, and this beast from the land, you cannot conclude that these two fiends are running amok on their own. No!
John's already told us, Jesus is the ruler over the kings of the earth. Just like when you jump into the Old Testament, and you see men like Sennacherib, or you see men in heathen nations, or you see Israelite kings living like heathen. God's sovereign over those men. God is accomplishing His purposes through Ahab.
God is accomplishing His purposes through Manasseh. God is accomplishing His purposes on this earth for His glory and for the good of His people. We mustn't ever lose sight of that. It doesn't matter what our physical eye perceives.
What matters is what the truth of God's Word reveals. So this morning, when we woke up, Jesus Christ was still at the right hand of the majesty on high. Isn't that encouraging? No matter what happens in our future, that doesn't change.
Jesus is the ruler over the kings of the earth. I personally find this greeting to be a balm, a tonic, and a great help in the midst of the days in which we live. and I'm sure that they did in the 1st century, they did in the 2nd century, in the 3rd century, in the 4th century, all the way up until our time. The people of God have gone to the Book of Revelation not to satisfy their eschatological curiosities, not to develop weird charts, not to speculate on whether or not Kissinger was the beast. What they came to the Book of Revelation for was to see the Lamb enthroned on high overruling all things for his own glory and for the good of his church.
That's the take-home message in the book of Revelation. And as well, there is movement. The last two chapters, what does it do but summarize the entire Bible? If you don't know the sort of great narrative that the Bible is about, what we have in the very beginning is paradise lost and we have paradise restored.
There are two men that feature in the Bible that you need to reckon with. the first Adam and the last Adam. The first Adam was given dominion, the first Adam was told to extend that garden temple, to multiply image-bearers in the earth, and to promulgate the glory of God in the world. Adam the first fell. He plunged the race into sin.
Adam the second did not fail. Adam the second, according to Paul in Romans chapter 5, by this man's one act of righteousness the many are made righteous. And so what the second Adam does is consummate. The second Adam does all that Adam the first was supposed to do.
And that's what Revelation 21 and 22 describe for us. It's interesting. Adam was planted in a garden temple. When John sees the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven, it has the shape of a temple.
The idea is clear. God and sinners, redeemed by grace through faith in Christ, dwelling together for all eternity. The book of Revelation, I can't say enough good about it, not that God needs me to plug the book, but I hope that you will be encouraged to read. So we see the person of the Lord Jesus Christ developed, the threefold office of Christ, and then
The Work of Christ for His People
notice finally, in this blessed greeting, the work of Jesus Christ. Notice in the latter half of verse 5, to him who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and has made us kings and priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. So he's not only prophet, priest, and king, but look at what he does for his people.
He redeems us in His blood." It's a blessed statement there, to Him who loved us, or it could be the present, to Him who loves us, either way, the Bible highlights both, to Him who loved us and washed us from our sins. Not only is the throne, does the throne feature predominantly in the book of Revelation, but also this reference to the Lamb. About 29 times, Jesus, as the Lamb of God, is referred to in the book of Revelation. What does John want you to get?
He wants you to understand something about Christ's rule and reign at the throne, and he wants you to understand something about redemption through his blood. And this is fitting, because it was John who wrote John 1.29, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. I already read that passage in John 5. Look there for just a moment.
Verse six, I looked and behold in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb as though it had been slain. A lamb having been slain. But look back for just a moment to verse four. 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. Isn't that interesting? the lion of the tribe of Judah, and when John looks at him, he is as a lamb who had been slain. The lion of the tribe of Judah, the king of kings and lord of lords, is also the sacrifice for his people.
We truly have a great savior. I met my niece's husbands. Whenever we're together, they like to ask questions about the Bible. And they brought up some movie that showed how Christianity and the story about the virgin birth and some of the particular events that we know about Jesus have many parallels in other religions.
And many other religions have sort of a virgin birth narrative. And there's a hero figure and all that sort of thing. not having been familiar with that particular movie or not having been familiar with all those particular religions. I was able, though, with confidence to say, yeah, but in this one thing, I know for a fact they differ. Those other competing systems do not have blood atonement at their root.
That's why Jesus came. It was to live and to die and to rise again so that we might have redemption through his blood. There may be a hero figure in those other religions, there may be an exemplar, follow him and be like him, but we have a crucified Savior because we are so sinful and we are so polluted and we are so at odds with God He sent his son to redeem us through his blood. That differentiates Christianity from every other religion.
It is a redemptive religion. It's not just example. It's not just a few steps for a better life. At the very core of Christianity is Christ and his cross work on behalf of his people.
John says, not only should we consider Him as faithful witness, as firstborn from the dead, and ruler over the kings of the earth, but we ought to praise Him, because He loves us. Isn't that beautiful, too? Him who loves us. You may not be loved by many people in this world, and that's sad.
I hope that you'll meet more people that love you. But there is one that loves you if you're a believer in Jesus Christ. And there is nothing better than that. No matter what your station, no matter what your lot, no matter how few friends you have, there is one in heaven who is for you.
He loves you. And not only does he love you, he has washed us from our sins in his own blood. This image features predominantly as well. We've already seen there in chapter 5, notice dropping down in verse 9, when they praise the Lamb.
Notice in verse 9, you are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals for you were slain and have redeemed us to God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation and have made us kings and priests to our God and we shall reign on the earth. Notice in chapter 7, Chapter 7, verse 13, Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from? And I said to him, Sir, you know. So he said to me, These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the land.
It's great imagery again. Do you dip a fabric into blood and it comes out white? Well, if you're a sinful wretch and Jesus cleanses you, you come out white. Therefore, they are before the throat of God and serve Him day and night in His temple.
There's that priestly function. He makes us priests, not to sacrifice, but to offer up the sacrifices of praise and worship and adoration to our God. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. Notice in verse 16, "...they shall neither hunger any more, nor thirst any more.
The sun shall not strike them, nor any heat. For the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." So already at the outset, John is basking in the glory of Christ as the one who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood. And not only that, but
Union with Christ and Priestly Reign
he has also made us kings and priests to his God and Father. How do we reign? It's by virtue of our union with Christ. That's how it is said that the saints reign.
It's because we are legally joined to Him. He is the victor. He is the king. He is the royal authority.
And because we are in union with Him, it is said that the saints of Christ reign as well. So we are kings and praise to His God and Father, and then John ends with doxology, or praise. This is obvious. It ought to go without saying.
But what we know concerning God, what we understand about the person and work of the Lord Jesus, ought not just end with us having a bit more knowledge. We shouldn't leave here saying, wow, now we know the three offices of Christ. Wow, we've heard something about the triune God. It ought to lead to doxology, theology proper, the doctrine of God, who He is in His being. who He is in His persons, ought to result in us saying, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever.
Amen. If our theology does not thrill, if our theology does not entice and incite from us worship of the triune God, then we need to repent. We shouldn't know all this good stuff and not be worshipers. I have a quote, I hope it's written in my Bible, by a man by the name of Donald MacLeod.
And he makes a statement concerning this, with the idea being when Moses saw the burning bush, he saw a great sight there. He saw a bush that was burning and not being consumed. Well, McLeod, picking up something of that imagery, says, God is not simply a great sight, the object of speculative curiosity. The revelation of His glory and the whole theological process which follows from it is holy ground.
We cannot stand as superiors over God or His Word. We may not coldly and detachedly analyze and collate the great self-revealing deeds and utterances of Jehovah." You know, if somebody collects bugs, they might, you know, pin them to a court board and they sort of analyze, they collate, they just study them as a bit of a curiosity. He's saying theology is not meant to be done that way. You don't put God on your court board and say, yes, one substance, three subsistences, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, not modalism, not subordinationism, but one triune.
You do that, you analyze the data of scripture, but here's what he goes on to say. He says, we may not theologize without emotion and commitment. He says, the doctrine must thrill and exhilarate. It must humble and cast down.
He says, theology has lost its way, and indeed its very soul, if it cannot say with John, I fell down at his feet as dead. And may I dare say, we are not to study this and then enter into tomorrow freaked out. Not to say you can't grieve and be sorrowful, but get over it. March onward.
Look to the King of Kings. Look to that throne that is displayed and worship Him and serve Him and walk in faith by the grace of God. I read a blog post by a Reformed Baptist pastor today. He had some good reflections upon what happened yesterday.
He highlights that America has become, not become, but it is a culture of sin. In other words, we have gravitated toward a president that sees no problem in the death of babies whatsoever. He has no problem in homosexual marriage. He has no problem in all manner of perversion and wickedness.
So he says it's a culture of sin. He says it's also a culture of stupidity. He justifies that language. He says that Folly, foolishness is obvious when men see a record that's dismal and nevertheless vote in favor of it.
And then he highlights that it's a culture under judgment. God gave them over, Romans 1, 24, 26, and 28. When men reject God, when they do not honor God as God, nor are they thankful to God, God's response is to give them over. It is the worst form of just, or the worst type of abandonment.
When God gives men over, we're not in good shape. This is not a time for rejoicing. And so having mused on those three things, he then ends with this statement. He says that policies can address political circumstances, but they cannot address the fundamental weaknesses of the American soul.
He says, where we stand today is not so radically different from where we stood, say, in 1980. We don't need another Reagan. We need the Holy Spirit. Now, arguably, on one level, yeah, we ought to pray that God raise up good men.
But he's ending this article with the emphasis that the church has what the culture desperately needs. We don't have the political candidate. We can't make Ronald Reagan come back from the dead. But by the power of the Holy Spirit and the faithful proclamation of his word, we have specifically what a culture of sin, a culture of stupidity, and a culture under judgment desperately needs.
He says, if men are to turn from their sin and discover the wisdom that comes from serving God, they do not need better government but the message which has been entrusted to the church. And I think that's a great statement, one that encouraged me, one that gave me great hope in the task that is ahead of us. Our task as the Church doesn't change. We preach Christ and Him crucified.
Whether President Obama's on the throne, whether the Beast of Revelation's on the throne, the response from the Church is to be the same. We are to proclaim the glorious truth of the everlasting gospel. Well, let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Our Father, we thank You for Your Word, and we thank You for this wonderful description and this greeting of the triune God, the amplification of our glorious Christ in His person, in His work, in all that He has accomplished on behalf of His people. How we thank You that He is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and how we thank You that He is the ruler over the kings of the earth. that He rules, that He governs by that sword that proceeds from His mouth, by His Holy Word. We pray that You would fill our hearts with Your Spirit, fill our hearts with hope, fill our hearts with grace so that we may persevere and bring glory to You. And we ask in Jesus' name, Amen.
Scripture References
- Exodus 3:14
- 2 Samuel 7
- Psalms 89; 89:27; 90
- Zechariah 4
- Matthew 28:18-20
- Acts 2; 2:29; 2:31
- Romans 1:24-28; 5; 8
- Colossians 1:15-18
- 1 Peter 3:15
- Revelation 1:4-6; 1:9; 2:9-10; 2:13; 3:1; 4:5; 5:4; 5:6; 5:9; 6:9; 7:13; 7:16; 12:11; 13:1-10; 21:4; 21:8
- John 1:18; 1:29