The Vision of the Son of Man
Notes
Transcript
So far in our series in Revelation we have taken time to look at the first eight verses, which has served as an introduction of sorts. Last week we focused on John’s introduction of the source of the vision being God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit…otherwise known as the Trinity.
This week’s focus is on God the Son, or as He is called in this passage of Scripture, “The Son of Man.”
As we begin this morning notice...
I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.
We see John getting a little personal with the churches he is addressing. He reminds them that he is their “brother.” As a believer in Christ himself, he is part of the family of God; the same family that these other believers are a part of. He reminds them that they are all part of the same family, they all have the same Father and they are all in this together.
As a matter of fact they are going through “tribulation” together. They are “partners in the tribulation.” He is on the island of Patmos, probably for preaching the resurrection of Christ. Most likely he has been exiled here for the sake of the Gospel, and he knows that they too, have undergone tribulation and will face more. Domatian was a ruthless persecutor of believers and John wants the believers to be reminded that he is not exempt from trials and testings and neither are they. He is establishing they are on level ground…they are part of the same spiritual family and they are partners in tribulation.
He says they are also partners in the “kingdom.” As we saw last week God has made His followers part of His kingdom. Once again we are reminded that they are partners…partners in the Gospel, partners in tribulation and partners in the kingdom.
Finally they are partners in “patient endurance.” Tribulations requires that we persevere through them. This patient endurance that believers need is not found in the energy and power of their flesh, but this endurance is found, as John said, “in Jesus.”
This gives us a little insight into WHO is writing these letters too. He’s writing these letters to individual churches filled with people who are part of the “family” of God and God’s kingdom, who are undergoing tribulation and persecution.
As we jump into verse 10 we notice that John begins to unravel this vision a little more...
Notice three things about this vision that John sees. First, we see...
The Setting of the Vision (vv. 9-11)
The Setting of the Vision (vv. 9-11)
I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”
John was “In the Spirit”
John was “In the Spirit”
This phrase is used FOUR times in the Book of Revelation. One each occasion John immediately receives a vision from God after revealing he was “in the Spirit.” Kendall Easley says this is another way of saying, “I had a vision that was inspired by God.”
Revelation is divided up into FOUR major visions and this is the beginning of the first.
Second we see this vision happened
On the Lord’s Day
On the Lord’s Day
What or when is the “Lord’s Day.” Some believe that this could be a reference to the “first day of the week.” We know from other Scriptures, as well as early church history, that many believers migrated from worshipping the Lord on the “Sabbath Day” (Saturday) to the Lord’s Day (Sunday).
Some believe the tradition of the “Lord’s Day” began with Constantine in the 4th Century. Though he may have popularized the concept, Sunday being referred to as the day of worship for the Christian Church started much earlier than Constantine. For instance...
One document written in the FIRST CENTURY said that believers “meet on the Lord’s Day and break bread.” This was around 300 years before Constantine.
Ignatius of Antioch, who died around 108 AD, a couple of hundred years before Constantine, described the Christians as ‘no longer living for the Sabbath, but for the Lord’s Day’.
Another very early historian said, “By early in the second century, the Sabbath had been abandoned and the Lord’s Day was the accepted Christian day.”
We also know in the early church that they sometimes would meet on the FIRST day of the week and the Apostle Paul instructed them to lay aside their gifts to the Lord on the FIRST day of the week.
However, this reference to the “Lord’s Day”, in this context, may not be referring to Sunday at all. After all, keep in mind what John is seeing and revealing. He is seeing and revealing the “Day of the Lord.” Some believe that John is saying, in the context of His vision, “The Lord revealed to me His day while I was in the Spirit.”
Again this isn’t something we should get bogged down in, but I wanted to summarize both interpretations...
John says he heard “a loud voice like a trumpet.”
John says he heard “a loud voice like a trumpet.”
What’s significant about the “trumpet like voice”? My friend, Dr. Barnes, says in his commentary:
The voice he hears catches attention…At one moment, it sounds impressive and beautiful, but also alarming and alerting! In ancient times, trumpets were often used to announce religious feasts or to provide a special notice for what would follow…God has caught John’s attention to what is about to follow.
John says he was told to “write what he saw in a book and send it to seven churches.”
John says he was told to “write what he saw in a book and send it to seven churches.”
As we mentioned last week John is writing to SEVEN literal churches. These churches were scattered throughout what was known as Asia at the time. However, there are applications from these messages to ALL churches in ALL times. We will explore these messages in greater detail in chapters 2 & 3. For now, notice...
The Savior in the Vision (vv. 12-16)
The Savior in the Vision (vv. 12-16)
Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
As John turns to see who is speaking the first thing that catches his eyes are SEVEN golden lampstands. We will look at these lampstands in greater detail when we get to verse 20, but please notice that the...
Savior was Standing in the MIDST of the SEVEN Lampstands
Savior was Standing in the MIDST of the SEVEN Lampstands
As we will learn in verse 20 these SEVEN lampstands represent the SEVEN churches that are the recipients of John’s letter. Jesus is in the MIDST of these SEVEN churches. Christ is the LIGHT of the world, and the church is to MIRROR His light! Jesus, should be right in the MIDDLE of everything the church is and everything the church does!
John then uses NINE descriptive terms to represent our Savior. Dr Barnes lists them in his commentary...
He is the Messiah
He is the Messiah
John refers to Him as the Son of Man. Dr. Barnes notes:
This title used of Christ emphasizes His place within humanity as well as His character as the Messiah.
The Son of God robed Himself in human flesh and walked among His creation. He spent time with His disciples and the people of Galilee. He is the Son of Man, He is the Messiah.
He is the Believer’s High Priest
He is the Believer’s High Priest
The garment that John sees Jesus wearing is very similar to the garment worn by the High Priest in the Old Testament!
The High Priest would have a gold thread running through his sash, but the sash worn by Jesus was completely gold.
Listen to Dr. Barnes explain the significance of this garment:
Many years before this moment, Jesus was stripped of His earthly garments and laid bare for mockery. And with that shame, Christ hung on the cross judged by the angry mob, the government, those who derided Him, and eventually judged by the Heavenly Father for the sins of the world. At that moment, the Father stepped down from heaven and covered the shame of the innocent Lamb with a curtain of pitch-black darkness. But now the scene in verse thirteen is much different. Stepping clear into view is this Jesus who adorns Himself with the mantle of the priest and who needs no sacrifice for Himself but comes as the eternal intercessor for those He represents. No longer does He stand judged but the one who has right to justify the guilty through the sacrifice of His own blood and through His own mediation.
He is the Ancient of Days
He is the Ancient of Days
Notice again
The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire,
It’s interesting this corresponds with Daniel’s vision in
“As I looked,
thrones were placed,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat;
his clothing was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames;
its wheels were burning fire.
Daniel would go on to say...
“I saw in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the Ancient of Days and the ONE that Daniel saw in His vision!
He is the Righteous One
He is the Righteous One
Verse 14 also mentions that His eyes were like a “flame of fire.” His eyes penetrate our souls, His eyes discern between right and wrong, between reality and hypocrisy. He makes RIGHTEOUS judgments because He sees all and He knows all. We do not always make RIGHTEOUS judgments. We don’t always have the whole story and we certainly cannot always discern someone’s motives.
Notice also
his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters.
He is the Just Judge
He is the Just Judge
Just as His bronze feet have the appearance of going through the refiner’s fire, the Lord Jesus had also been through the fire. He went through trials, testings, temptations, and faced death, hell and the grave. He came through successfully. He did not burn away the dross of His own sin, but ours!
He has shown His right to be the Judge of the earth! He is the ONLY one who can perfectly, rightly and justly judge others. He is on solid standing to carry this out when called upon!
He is the All-Powerful One
He is the All-Powerful One
John says that Jesus’ voice was “like the roar of many waters.” We are told that Niagara Falls has 12 million cubit feet of water that cascades down these falls every minute. Think how load you would have to speak, if you were standing at the bottom of the falls to be heard.
Christ’s voice is BOOMING, like the falls, and His Word flows out with POWER and FORCE. He is the WORD…He is the WORD of God.
Dr. Barnes notes:
…when He speaks, all of heaven stops and listens because it has all the force of eternity behind it. It booms forth and accomplishes all that it speaks. It is with the simple words Jesus spoke that He created all the universe. It is again a reminder…that nothing is too hard for God for all He need do is speak. His power is in His word and in the expression of His will.
Notice
In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
He is the Caring Sovereign
He is the Caring Sovereign
He holds the “seven stars.” Who are these seven stars? We are told in verse 20 that these SEVEN stars are the angels/messengers to the SEVEN churches. These messengers are being held in the hand of the Lord. They are under His protective care and direction. Many believe these stars refer to the pastors of these SEVEN churches because they are the one who are to deliver God’s message to the congregation week after week. What a comfort knowing that the Sovereign Lord of the universe holds those who are faithful to deliver His Word in His right hand.
He is the Warring Conqueror
He is the Warring Conqueror
Upon first glance we may assume this is the “sword” mentioned in
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
However, the words that are used for “sword” are different in the Greek language. Most likely this is a reference to the sword in
From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.
Jesus Christ is the CONQUERING KING!
Finally we see Him revealed as the
Glorious One
Glorious One
Notice again verse 16...”His face was like the sun shining in FULL STRENGTH.” What a glorious sight this must have been!
I think this must be similar to the glory that Moses witnessed in Exodus 34. After his encounter with God his face shone for 40 days. I’m sure it must have been similar to what Peter, James and John witnessed at the Transfiguration...
And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.
John saw the Savior in all of His splendor and glory! His Lord and Savior is now going to reveal to Him the...
The Subject of the Vision (vv. 17-20)
The Subject of the Vision (vv. 17-20)
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. As for the mystery of the seven stars that 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 are the seven churches.
John is so overwhelmed by what he sees he literally passes out. Then the Lord Jesus, reaches down with His nail scarred hand and touches John and tells Him not to fear.
“Fear not.” Those are familiar words that John heard on many different occasions and He and the Lord Jesus walked together for those 3 years in Galilee.
But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.”
He also reminds John of His divinity. Jesus is God robed in human flesh. He tells John that He is the “first and the last.” There’s no denying that Jesus is God. Remember what God told Isaiah in
Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel
and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:
“I am the first and I am the last;
besides me there is no god.
The final reminder is of His victory over death. He reminds John that He is alive FOREVERMORE and that He HOLDS THE KEYS of death and the grave! I love what Barclay says about this:
we who are Christians believe that Jesus Christ has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel (2 Timothy 1:10), that because he lives we too shall live (John 14:19), and that, therefore, for [those who know Him] the bitterness of death is forever past.
I love the way Kendall Easley summarizes this section. He says that in vv. 17-19 Jesus demonstrates His POWER:
His power over TIME (He is the First and the Last)
His power over LIFE (He is the LIVING ONE)
His power over SIN (He was DEAD but is ALIVE FOREVERMORE)
His power over DEATH (He HOLDS the keys to the twin monsters of death and hades)
As we conclude this chapter notice the SUBJECT that we will be dealing with in the next TWO CHAPTERS. Look again at
As for the mystery of the seven stars that 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 are the seven churches.
The SEVEN lampstands that John saw represented the SEVEN churches that he will be writing. It’s interesting that these churches are referred to as LAMPSTANDS. After all Christians are to be the LIGHT OF THE WORLD.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
But keep in mind a LAMPSTAND is just something that HOLDS the light. It doesn’t have light in and of itself, but is just a stand upon which the light stands. Jesus is TRULY the light of the world…His church and His people are just the VESSEL through which He shines in this world!
We also see in this verse who the ANGELS are that John saw. The Greek word for angel can mean an angel like we typically think of, but it can also mean a “MESSENGER.” The letters in chapters 2 and 3 are addressed to the “angel” of each of these churches.
There are three explanations typically given as to who these angels are:
A literal messenger who would take these letters from John and who would deliver them to these churches.
The pastor of each of these churches
A type of “guardian angel” that each of these churches had.
I tend to agree with my friend, Dr. Bruce Barnes, who says in his commentary:
The word used for angels represent the messengers of the churches since the word for angel in Greek has both the ideas of angel or messenger. Because the messages are to go throughout the seven churches, the leaders of the churches would naturally be the ones communicating the messages to the churches. And most likely the pastor is the specific one being indicated.
Applications:
Continue to Move FORWARD in Obedience and For God’s Glory in Spite of the Persecution and Tribulation You Experience
Continue to Move FORWARD in Obedience and For God’s Glory in Spite of the Persecution and Tribulation You Experience
Both John and the churches he was writing were undergoing INTENSE persecution for the cause of Christ. They knew what it was like to be persecution and undergo tribulation first hand.
Tradition tells us that John was boiled in hot oil before being exiled to the Isle of Patmos. Yet he did not allow persecution or the tribulation he faced to silence him or stop him.
He understood that he was a partner with the churches that were undergoing tribulation and persecution as well.
You and I are going to face tribulation in this broken world. We are going to face persecution for the cause of Christ and for living a Gospel centered life.
The PERSECUTION we FEEL and the TRIBULATION we FACE should have no bearing on our OBEDIENCE to God. We must move forward in OBEDIENCE and FAITH for His glory and His glory alone!
As a Believer He is YOUR HIGH PRIEST…Go to Him Early and Often
As a Believer He is YOUR HIGH PRIEST…Go to Him Early and Often
Remember, He was wearing the garment of the High Priest. He opened up a way for YOU to come directly to the Father ANY TIME, ANY DAY and for ANY REASON.
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Trust Him and Him Alone to Set You Free From the Bondage of Sin, Death, Hell & the Grave
Trust Him and Him Alone to Set You Free From the Bondage of Sin, Death, Hell & the Grave
Remember HE HOLDS THE KEYS! You don’t have the keys. There is only one set and they cannot be copied. He’s the ONLY ONE who can set you free! He’s the ONLY ONE who can break the chains of your sin and release you from the PRISON of death.
Will YOU trust Him today? Will YOU call on His name today to set you free? He’s READY, WILLING and ABLE to respond to YOUR call!