The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 3 Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.My Understanding: Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever, gave these words in Revelation to John to write to the churches in Asia. These words were to be for their strengthening, hope of salvation, promise of Christ’s soon (imminent) return and warnings of judgment to come on the earth. He was writing to let them know of the things that were present as well as the things yet to come, the reality of which they did not experience in full in their lifetime, yet we are seeing many of these prophecies of scripture beginning to unfold in our day and time.
Greetings and Doxology
4 John,
To the seven churches in the province of Asia:
Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
7 Look, he is coming with the clouds,
and every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him;
and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him.
So shall it be! Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
One Like a Son of Man
9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”
12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and among the lampstands was someone “like a son of man,” dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. 15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
19 “Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. 20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
John, in the power of the Holy Spirit, speaking the very words of God Almighty, wrote down the words that God gave him to write, so these words are God-breathed and are God’s words to his church yet today, so that is why we must take them to heart, i.e. we must take them seriously and must personalize them to our lives today in obeying whatever the Lord Jesus Christ teaches us through these words, His divine Word for us.
Revelation is the revelation (a showing; disclosure of divine truth) of Jesus Christ, so it should not be surprising that Jesus Christ is the main topic in this first chapter. He is described as the faithful witness, not only because of his teaching while he was on the earth, but because he continues to witness his truth into our hearts through his divinely inspired word (the Bible) and via the witness of the Holy Spirit within us. He witnesses to God’s saving grace to save men and women from their sins, which was provided for us through his shed blood on a cross when he took upon himself all of our sins, having cancelled the debt that stood against us and having risen victoriously from the grave in conquering death, Satan, hell and sin – the penalty and control of sin.
This same Jesus, who came to earth, taking upon himself human flesh, having suffered death on a cross, who then was buried and then rose again, is one day coming again to receive his bride (the true church) unto himself. While we, his bride, are on this earth, we are in the process of being sanctified, i.e. being made holy and set apart for God and for His service while we wait expectantly and hopefully for his soon return. This process of sanctification began when we believed in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, having repented of our sin and having turned our lives over to God in faith and obedience to do his will and to live for him only from this point on. And, it continues throughout our Christian lives as we daily come to the cross of Christ in choosing to not live for our flesh, but rather to honor God with our lives in all things. We grow in him daily as we spend time at his feet in prayer and in the word, and as we apply what he teaches us to our daily lives in full surrender and obedience to God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
While we are still on this earth, we are to be Christ’s witnesses, after the Holy Spirit of God has come upon us in power, and we are to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey our Lord’s every command. John was one of those witnesses. The people of his day did not like his messages, so he was banished to an island, which is where he wrote (he was God’s scribe) the revelation of Jesus Christ. As Christ’s witnesses today, we may face some of that same kind of persecution and rejection as Jesus Christ faced, and as his followers faced as they tried to tell people the truth of the gospel.
Yet, when we are rejected, mistreated, banished, abandoned, mocked, and/or persecuted for the word of God, for the gospel of Jesus Christ, and for our testimony for Jesus Christ of the truths of his word, we should not let that discourage us, because John is evidence that God can use us even when we are banished. Paul wrote many of his writings from prison. So, we must never give up or feel that God can no longer use us if man rejects us and/or dismisses us as though we have no value, because we still have value to God and he can still use us no matter what chains man may try to place upon us to hinder us from being who God intended us to be and to be used of God in the way in which he intended. God opens doors that no man can shut and he shuts doors that no man can open, so God can still use us even if we are housebound, in prison, forsaken and abandoned by those we love.
We should never fear what is taking place now nor should we fear what will soon take place in the future because our God is the great I AM. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end; the First and the Last. He is before all things and through him all things were made and have their being and he, Jesus Christ, our God, holds all things together by his powerful word. There is nothing that escapes God’s notice. He has all things under his control. Nothing is too hard or too big for our God. Jesus Christ was alive, then he died on a cross, then he rose again triumphantly, and now he lives for ever and ever, amen. He holds the keys of death and hell, i.e. he is all powerful and he is in absolute control and authority over life, death, hell and heaven, and of our lives – present and future. We never have to fear anything that comes our way, because nothing will happen in our lives that God is not in absolute authority, rule and dominion over anything we could ever experience. He has a plan for everything that he brings and/or allows into our lives.
So, we should rest in who God is, what Jesus Christ did for us in dying for our sins, in our hope of eternal salvation, and of the promise of our Lord’s soon return and we should let the peace of God rule in our hearts and lives. He has provided his light (truth) in the darkness (sin; rebellion; wickedness) of our lives and has provided us with his grace and mercy that could not possibly be comprehended in their fullness by our finite minds. His grace and mercy are fathomless! The price he paid for our sins set us free, not only from the penalty of sin (eternal separation from God in hell), but he set us free from the control of sin daily in our lives, as well as he set us free to walk in freedom, in truth, and in obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ and to serve our Lord in that complete freedom and love for the rest of our days. This is true joy! This is true peace! And, this is true victory over anything and everything this life and world can throw at us. So, rest in his love and kindness today!
Rest for the Weary / An Original Work / April 23, 2011
Rest for the weary; peace for the soul;
Light in the darkness; mercy untold;
Perfect salvation; pardoned and free,
For Jesus died so that all may believe.
While we are waiting for Your return,
Jesus, Redeemer, let our hearts yearn
For your soon coming to get Your bride,
Washed in Your blood, having been sanctified.
Father, Son, Spirit, all three in One
Giveth salvation through redemption;
Jesus provided the sacrifice,
For our sins blood bought, for He paid the price.
Music, Pg 1
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Christsfreeservant/RestfortheWeary45.jpg
Music, Pg 2
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b58/Christsfreeservant/RestfortheWeary248.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment