Fix Your Eyes on Jesus (Revelation 1)

Translation

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him to reveal to his servants what must happen soon. And he communicated this by sending his angels to his servant John, who gave testimony to the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ, as much as he saw. Blessed are those who read aloud and who hear the word of the prophecy and keep the things that have been written in it, because the time is near.

John, to the seven churches in Asia. Grace to you and peace from the one who is and who was and who comes, and from the seven spirits which are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To the one who loves us and frees us from our sin by his blood. He made us kings, priests to our God and Father. To him be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.

Look! He comes with the clouds!

Every eye will see him, even those who pierced him

All the tribes of the earth will wail on account of him.

Yes, Amen!

I am the Alpha and Omega, says the Lord God, the one who is and who was and who comes, the almighty.

I, John, your brother and partner in suffering and kingdoms and endurance in Jesus, I was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the spirit on the Lord’s Day and heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, saying, “That which you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches in Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.” I turned to look for the voice speaking with me, and as I turned I saw seven golden lampstands. In the midst of the lampstands was one like a Son of Man, with a robe stretching to his feet, and he had put a golden belt around his chest. Even more, his head and hair were white, like wool is white, or like snow, and his eyes were like burning flames. His feet were like polished bronze, like in a burning furnace, and his voice was the sound of rushing water. In his right hand he had seven stars and from his mouth protruded a sharp double-edged sword, and his face was shining like the sun by his power.

And when I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. He put his right hand on me as he said, “Don’t fear. I am the first and the last, and the living one. I was dead and look: I am alive for ever and ever, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. So write what you’ve seen, what is and what is about to happen after these things. The secret of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand and the seven lampstands of gold: The seven stars are the seven messengers of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

What was revealed?

Smell of something good cooking (Peterson illustration)

Revelation is the pinnacle of the scripture story. All of the Bible leads to here, and Revelation finally pulls it all together into one, beautiful picture

But Revelation is often conceived of less like a good smell, and more like a bump in the night

Revelation should be the final, beautiful climax of scripture. Because it has been misused and abused so much, however, many Christians want to avoid the book altogether.

Like a bump in the night, however, once we come downstairs and search around for the cause of the scare, we find there’s nothing to be afraid of after all.

Two things we should take away from this whole series on Revelation:

Firstly, it’s Revelation, not Revelations

One unified, coherent vision

Secondly, it’s the Revelation of Jesus Christ

verse 1 makes this clear

End times, war, spiritual battle, etc. are all in Revelation, but that’s not what is being revealed

The big Revelation of the book of Revelation is Jesus!

Revelation from Greek αποκαλυψις, means something like “to pull back the curtain”

John has seen Jesus. He’s seen what Jesus has done, what he is doing, and what he will do. He’s seen the reign of Christ in past, present, and future terms.

This Revelation of Jesus is a gift to us, not something to fear

Revelation of Jesus given to Christ by God, given to John by angels

Jesus intends to share with all of his servants, this book is relevant for all Christians in every time

But we must also remember, while it is for us, it was written to seven particular churches

Revelation must be understood as being relevant to the people to which it is written.

While there is some stuff about the last days here, for the most part this is about things that must happen “soon”, in John’s own lifetime.

“Blessed are those who read aloud and who hear...” This was intended to be read in churches!

“Because the time is near”, what time?

“Look! He comes with the clouds!” the second coming of Christ. The time we hope for!

“Blessed” = μακαριος “happy” or “fortunate”, we should be happy reading revelation. Like all news about Christ, this is good news!

Jesus who was

So what is revealed about Jesus here? Firstly, that this is the same Jesus we know and have known before

This is a revelation from Jesus Christ who is trinity. John recieved the revelation by the Spirit. The Revelation was permitted by the Father, and the Revelation is of the Son.

The revelation is given to John, and by proxy to us, by “the one who is and who was and who comes”, the same God we’ve always known

“I am who I am”

Alpha and Omega

“seven spirits before his throne” Is. 6, arch-angels

This is the same God today as yesterday. If we love God in the gospels, we’ll love him still in Revelation

This is the same Jesus we’re familiar with as well

the faithful witness to God (“the only son has made him known,” “he who sees me has seen the Father”)

The firstborn from the dead (resurrection, promise of our resurrection too)

The one who loves us and freed us from our sin by his blood

Not only freedom from sin, but he made us “Kings and priests to our God and Father”

The Jesus revealed by John is the same one we already know. The Son of God who came down to earth, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and Virgin Mary, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, was dead and buried, the third day he arose from the dead, he ascended into heaven

Jesus who Is

But this Jesus is also different than the one we know. This is Jesus as he is now, “sitting at the right hand of the Father”.

In a sense, this is a much more dangerous Jesus. We like to cling to the Jesus who was, because that Jesus is safe. He remains in the past.

The wise story-teller, the one who bore the cross, remains safely in the past where he can make no demands of us, or have any real bearing on our lives.

Revelation, however, reminds us that Jesus not only was, but he is and is to come.

We affirm this in our communion liturgy (Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again)

We affirm this as Easter people, “Christ is risen!”

We must learn to see Jesus not only as he was, but as what he is and will be.

He did come down to earth and given his life for our sins. But he also now sits at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again to judge the world.

So John wants to show us what Jesus is now. He is ruler of the earth. He sits at the right hand of God.

“Sitting” as a posture of ruling, not of doing nothing!

Jesus is at work, and John wants to pull back the curtain to reveal how Jesus is at work in the world, bringing us closer and closer to that time when he will return.

We will get to know more about the work Jesus is doing and plans to do throughout Revelation, but the first thing we might notice here is that Jesus looks a little different!

One like a son of man, Dan 7

The New Revised Standard Version Judgment before the Ancient One

I saw one like a human being

coming with the clouds of heaven.

“Robe stretching to his feet” Is. 6:1

The New Revised Standard Version A Vision of God in the Temple

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple.

“Golden Belt” = Royalty, but also perhaps prepared for battle, maybe also priestly imagery

White hair, fiery eyes, feet of bronze, and a voice like rushing water; Dan 7 and 10

The New Revised Standard Version Judgment before the Ancient One

As I watched,

thrones were set in place,

and an Ancient One took his throne,

his clothing was white as snow,

and the hair of his head like pure wool;

his throne was fiery flames,

and its wheels were burning fire.

The New Revised Standard Version Conflict of Nations and Heavenly Powers

5 I looked up and saw a man clothed in linen, with a belt of gold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like beryl, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the roar of a multitude.

Sword from his mouth

symbol of judgement/authority

John combines the imagery of the One Like a Son of Man, The Ancient of Days, and the Angel in Daniel to portray Jesus as the greatest possible being.

Jesus does not literally look like this

He is still a son of man, retaining his earthly image.

He is also, however, one with God and leader of the heavenly armies (YHWH of armies; “The LORD of hosts”)

Golden lampstands

reference to menorah in temple before God

Also symbol for the churches, which like the menorah, are an offering and light before God, making the world aware of his presence and power

Fixing our Eyes

This is the vision of Jesus we must set our eyes on.

Not just the Jesus who was. But the Jesus who was and is and is to come.

The Jesus who died on the cross, but also the Jesus who now sits at the right hand of the Father with power and authority and majesty.

The Revelation shows us what Jesus is doing in heaven now. It affirms that the work of Christ did not stop at Calvary, but he continues to work on our behalf in heaven, preparing a place for us and bringing all creation toward its goal and destination.

In short, Revelation is trying to fix our eyes.

It makes us see Jesus more clearly

It makes us see the world more clearly, not as bunch of random chaotic events, or as utterly broken and helpless, but as a place where God is at work bringing us toward new life.

In short, John calls to us, “Behold Jesus.

“Behold Jesus, who hangs upon the cross.”

Behold Jesus, who sits at the right hand of God, his eyes like fire, his feet like bronze, the sword of judgement coming forth from his mouth

Behold Jesus, he is coming with the clouds. Every eye will see him.