Revelation 1:4-8
Of Jesus - God
Almighty
Please open your Bibles to…
Rev 1:4 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,
Rev 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
Rev 1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Rev 1:7 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.
Rev 1:8 “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.”
Pray
Intro
√ Reminder, the Revelation was given to Christians to be a source of encouragement and hope!
To whom? (vs. 4)
Rev 1:4 John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: ...
√ Let's begin by looking at "who" this Revelation is written to
You'll remember that last week we found that this message of Jesus was sent to "His servants"...
...so in a general sense the Book is for all Christians for all time.
Yet, in vs. 4 we're told that the message is addressed specifically to....
"...to the seven churches which are in Asia:"
Important to understand in the midst of all the symbolism of Revelation that these are 7 literal churches - that is, there were actually churches in the cities of...
Ephesus
Smyrna
Pergamos
Thyatira
Sardis
Philadelphia
Laodicea
In a relatively small geographic area of "Asia" (minor) - modern day Turkey.
That's what makes the choice of them so interesting. All of them are fairly insignificant in terms of Bible history or influence. The only one recognized from Acts or the Epistles is Ephesus.
The great and influential churches in....
Antioch
Jerusalem
Rome
...are completely ignored in the Revelation!
It wasn't that these other churches didn't have problems which required the Lord's attention…
…rather, each of the 7 churches mentioned is also symbolic.
Of conditions and characteristics of the Church throughout history.
Of conditions and characteristics of individuals within any given church throughout history.
How do we know that?
1) Because of the general recipients of the letter.
"to His servants"
2) Because of the use of the number 7.
The number "7" occurs more than any other number in the Revelation - 54 times! Symbolic of perfection - (not always flawless, but complete) in the Hebrew mind.
7 Spirits of God
7 Stars
7 Seals
7 Lampstands
Thus, the 7 literal churches are also complete in their symbolic representation of the conditions and needs of every church, in every age.
So the church in Antioch (& Calvary Chapel) couldn't say...
"It doesn't apply to me because its not written to me!"
...rather, the Revelation has application in the life of every church and every believer.
Ap. So the great lessons for us as we study this letter of Jesus to these 7 literal churches have great application to our own lives today!
"Oh Mr. Postman..." (vs. 4-5b)
√ Oh Mr. Postman!
Now that we know who the Revelation was written to, now let's look at Who it's from!
Ex. Stack of letters in the mail box - look at the return address to determine whether or not I even want to open it, or "file" it! J
Look Who this is from...
Rev. 1:4 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,
Rev 1:5 and from Jesus Christ,
We find 3 Individuals, or Persons identified as the source of the message. A beautiful picture and proof text of the Triune Nature of God!
"from Him who is and who was and who is to come,"
The Father - God's eternal presence described.
"from the seven Spirits who are before His throne"
The Holy Spirit - God's ministry to man described.
Look at Isa. 11:22 & 3 (also Rev. 3:1, 4:5 & 5:6)
"from Jesus Christ,"
The Son - The Name by which Mankind is saved.
With that kind of
return address - we want to open this letter!
* Note that once again the Triune Nature of God is revealed! Each member of the Trinity mentioned and given equal honor, yet described by the unique activity of each in the work of God.
The heavenly message (vs. 4 again!)
√ Before we move on let's look at the salutation that Jesus uses to address us as He opens His letter...
"Grace to you and peace" - vs. 4
You know what a salutation is;
"A polite expression of greeting or goodwill"
"Greetings indicating respect and affection; regards"
"A word or phrase of greeting used to begin a letter."
Ex. A family member - "dearest..."
Your spouse…
"my dearest, most precious bride of whom the psalmist sing and all other woman pale by comparison...."
The IRS…
"Most benevolent sirs"
Most of that is just protocol - just filler really.
But God isn't just filling space here - He's communicating Truth even in His salutation.
Paul began all his letters to the churches this way - perhaps he learned it from Jesus!?
Now we find Jesus begins His letter to the church with the same salutation!
√ "Grace" - that unmerited favor that God has extended to Mankind.
Here in this salutation it reminds us that Grace is the means by which we have a relationship with God.
We begin a relationship with God by Grace.
Our relationship with God is sustained by Grace.
We obtain all of God's provision and promises for eternity by Grace.
Every good and precious thing a man can receive from God is received through God's Grace!
That's why Paul exhorted Timothy...
2Ti 2:1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
Jesus reminds us that our relationship with Him is founded upon, and will continue throughout eternity based upon His love for us.
√ "Peace" - is our experience in Christ.
To know Jesus, is to know Peace.
Peace isn't just the absence of conflict; more than that it is the inner harmony we experience as Christians when our...
spirit
soul
body
...are working together instead of against one another.
Before we were Christians our soul and body struggled for dominion of our daily decisions.
Ex. Addictive behavior. The body cries out for that which your soul knows is destructive! The result - conflict and turmoil within - no peace. An emotional mess.
Ah, but when you're a born again - the spirit comes to life and when that conflict between the soul and the body heats up the Lord can minister peace through the spirit.
So, here in this salutation we're reminded that peace is only found in Jesus Christ!
Ap. If you're not experiencing peace today - Christian, you need more time with Jesus. Non-Christian, you need to get saved!
The becoming One (vs. 5, 6 & 8)
√ In vs. 5 & 8 we have the beginning of a series of Names by which Jesus is identified in the Revelation.
Rev. 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
Rev 1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
And…
Rev 1:8 "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."
The...
Faithful witness
Firstborn from the dead
Ruler over the kings of the earth
Alpha & Omega, Beginning and the End
Who is and who was and who is to come
The Almighty
Why so many names!?
Ex. Christopher James Eagan Bartholomew Curtin - only boy in the family gonna get everyone mentioned!
The reason is that each Name (or title) gives us greater insight into the unfolding Revelation of Who He is - the primary purpose of the Book!
Faithful witness - refers to Jesus' faithful fulfillment of His mission on earth.
Joh 18:37 Pilate therefore said to Him, "Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."
Jesus was a faithful witness for His Father unto death. He spoke all that the Father told Him to speak, He did all that the Father gave Him to do…
…He finished the mission He was sent to do.
Paul echoed the same thought in ...
1Ti 6:13 I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate,
Firstborn from the dead - not that Jesus was the first to be brought back to life; but that He was the first to receive His immortal resurrection Body. Also, first in preeminence.
See Col. 1:13-20 for a full picture.
Ruler over the kings of the earth - while Firstborn from the dead reminds us of the past, ruler over the kings of the earth speaks prophetically of the end of the age when Jesus returns to establish His Kingdom on earth.
Note vs. 6 reveals who those kings are - it's you and me who have been washed clean of our sins by the blood of Jesus and made to be a kingdom of kings and priests!
Alpha & Omega, Beginning and the End, Who is and who was and who is to come - speaks of His eternal Nature.
He is before all things began
He will be after all things are done away with
He always was, is and will always be!
Real important because it clearly proclaims that Jesus is eternal - an attribute which only God has! Thus, Jesus must be God!
The Almighty - the last title which Jesus claims in His opening statement is that of "the Almighty".
Greek is - "pantokrator" - the all ruling - all powerful God! It is a term used exclusively of God - never of a human king or any other spiritual power.
If you were confused about WHO He is - be confused no longer! He is God!
Ap. What is the point for us this morning? What is the application of all these Names of Jesus for our lives?
The unfolding story of the Revelation is really the culmination of the unfolding story of Who God is which began in Genesis.
Ex. YHWH - the Becoming One
YHWH Yireh (provider)
YHWH Rapha (healer)
What we find is that for every need of Man, God is the perfect and complete solution - "Jesus is the answer"!
Ap. "Jesus" - "YHWH saves"
Our relationship with God begins when we invite Jesus to become that which we need most…
…our Savior!
As we then grow in our relationship with God we come to find that Jesus is able to meet every need we have in life!
So, whatever your need is this morning Jesus is able and willing to meet it.
His return (vs. 7)
Rev 1:7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, and they also who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.
√ The Revelation of Jesus would not be complete without a description of His 2nd Advent.
Important to note the characteristics of His Coming.
1) Public event - "every eye will see Him"
Not secretly as the Jehovah Witness' claim occurred in 1914, but a literal physical return to this earth in full view of every person living.
Special mention is made of those who "pierced Him" - a reference to the Jews and a fulfillment of Zech. 12:10.
2) He is "pierced" - the same Jesus who was crucified.
Not a Korean Messiah - Rev. Moon.
Not someone with the "Christ" spirit - Dali Lama
Not someone in England - the Lord Matraya
But, the same Jesus who walked on this earth almost 2,000 years ago!
Act 1:11 who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."
Jesus warned us that one of the characteristics of the Last Days would be that many would claim to be Christ..
Mat 24:23 "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it.
Mat 24:24 "For false christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
Mat 24:25 "See, I have told you beforehand.
Mat 24:26 "Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it.
Mat 24:27 "For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
Rather we can be confident that when Jesus comes back it will be the same Jesus who walked in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago and today lives in Heaven.
When He comes back it will be in the same manner as He left.
Clouds
Visible
To the Mount of Olives
Ap. Reminder that there will be great deception in the Last Days - the days that we live in. Be on guard, know His Word, test everything by His Word.
Close
√ Do you know the Jesus Revealed in the Bible?
Do you know Him as...
Faithful witness
Firstborn from the dead
Ruler over the kings of the earth
Alpha & Omega, Beginning and the End
Who is and who was and who is to come
The Almighty?
Have you given your life to King Jesus?
Are you serving Him today?