The Revelation of Jesus Christ Pt. 2

Introduction

Today, we will continue from last Sunday morning looking at the Revelation of Jesus Christ - let’s look at the next set of verses here and see what the Lord has to say...

The People of the Book of Revelation

Revelation 1:4 KJV 1900

4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

This letter was to be sent to seven specific churches in Asia Minor. These churches are mentioned by name in verse 11 and they are dealt with in detail in chapters two and three.

I want you to know that they were real, literal congregations that existed at the time John penned this book under inspiration of the Holy Ghost. Jesus spoke to them about real saints, real sinners, real situations and real solutions.

Here’s something else, these churches are representative of every Christian church that has ever existed. Every church contains some of the characteristics that marked these early churches.

While it doesn’t say unto the Shining Light Baptist Church, it’s got just as much to say to us as if were...

What are the seven Spirits which are before his throne?

I believe the book of Isaiah answers that:

Isaiah 11:2 “2 And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and might, The spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;”

1. The spirit of the Lord … the nature of Jesus Christ.

2. The spirit of wisdom … the ability God gives us to make the right decisions.

3. The spirit of understanding … the ability to understand the difficult.

4. The spirit of counsel … the ability to give good and wise advice.

5. The spirit of might … the power to do God’s will.

6. The spirit of knowledge … the ability to know beyond human comprehension.

7. The spirit of the fear of the Lord … the ability to respect and reverence the Lord and His will for our life.

The Person of the Book of Revelation

Revelation 1:5–6 KJV 1900

5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

He is the faithful witness!

In his prophetic office he is the revelation of God’s being and attributes (John 14:9). He is the one in whom and by whom the love, mercy, grace and goodness of God to his people are revealed (John 17:2, 6, 22–26). The truth and justice of God are revealed in his sin-atoning death (Rom. 3:24–26), which is our only way of access to God (John 3:14–16; 14:6). It is Christ who has revealed the sure and certain hope of eternal glory and opened the way for sinners to inherit it (John 11:25; 14:1–3).

He is the first begotten of the dead!

This speaks of his priestly office. He who died for our sins rose again as our great High Priest and opened for us the way of life, giving us acceptance with, and access to, the holy God (Heb. 10:19–22). This title, ‘the first begotten of the dead’, implies three things.

First, Christ was the first to be raised from death to immortality.

Secondly, Christ was the first and the only one to be raised from the dead by his own power (John 10:18).

Thirdly, Christ was raised from the dead as the first-fruits of the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:23).

He is the prince of the kings of the earth!

As the result of his death and resurrection as our substitute, the Lord Jesus Christ has been exalted and given dominion over all flesh (Phil. 2:9–11). He is King of kings and Lord of lords. All men, both small and great, are under the sovereign dominion of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Look on…What has He done?

He loved us!

Christ loved us. He loved us particularly (Isa. 43:4; Mal. 1:2; Rev. 3:9). He loved us eternally (Jer. 31:3). He loved us freely (Hosea 14:4). He loved us effectually (Deut. 7:8). He loved us, and loves us, perseveringly (John 13:1).

He washed us from our sins in his own blood!

The word translated “wash” means to “cleanse! Jesus shed His blood on the cross and when we trust Him; His blood washes us whiter than snow and cleanses us from every stain of sin, 1 John 1:7.

By the way, did you know what each of us brings to this thing called salvation? The text says, “our sins” and “His Own blood”. All we had to contribute to our salvation was sin. He contributed His blood. And, His blood washes away all of our sins, Eph. 1:7!

He made us kings and priests!

This phrase tells us that Jesus is to be praised because He refused to leave us like He found us. He found us in sin; He love us; He washed us in His blood and saved us; then He lifts us out of that condition and changes us for the glory of God, 2 Cor. 5:17. He takes old hell-bound sinners and makes them “kings and priests”.

The Point of the Book of Revelation

The last two verses of our text today give us a little glimpse of what we can expect as this book unfolds. They give us the premise of the entire book…Look at what it is:

Revelation 1:7–8 KJV 1900

7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

The coming of Jesus is the premise of the whole book of Revelation!

Jesus is coming PERSONALLY

Revelation 1:7 “7 Behold, he cometh...”

The world has waited in anticipation for somewhere around 6,000 years for the Redeemer to come. He came the first time, was born of a virgin and died on the cross to purchase the redemption. He is returning in the clouds above this earth to catch away His Bride in the Rapture. Then, one day, Jesus will return to this earth in power and glory. He will defeat the enemies of God and He will establish His kingdom here and He will reign here for 1,000 years. This verse is about that event. This does not speak about the Rapture, but of His Revelation.

Jesus is coming GLORIOUSLY

Revelation 1:7 “7 ...he cometh with clouds...”

This is not the first time that Jesus clothed Himself with clouds. He led Israel through the wilderness in a pillar of cloud, Ex. 13:21–22.

He ascended back into Heaven riding a chariot of clouds, Acts 1:9.

When He comes back, He will again surround Himself with clouds and will appear in glory and power. He is coming!

Jesus is coming VISIBLY

Revelation 1:7 “7 ...every eye shall see him...”

The Bible knows nothing about an invisible or secret second coming. Nowhere is this taught. On the contrary, “Every eye shall see him.” ’ When Christ comes, everyone will know it!

He will appear in the clouds and the whole world will be able to see Him at the same time.

This tells us that His presence and glory will be undeniable in that day.

Jesus is coming VICTORIOUSLY

Revelation 1:7 “7 ...they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him...”

The Lord Jesus Christ is coming with clouds of unparalleled splendour. To his saints, this is glorious. To his enemies, this will be terrifying.

The Bible makes it clear that the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus will not be a pleasant event for the people of the world. Jew and Gentile alike will wail when they see Him coming. The Jews will weep because their fathers rejected Him and their people paid a high price for their rebellion. The Gentiles will wail because He comes to judge sin and sinner alike.

Revelation 1:8 “8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”

The idea behind these titles for Jesus is that He is before all things and will remain beyond all things. Alpha was the first letter of the ancient Greek alphabet, and Omega was the last letter. Jesus says, “I am the ‘A to Z,’ the Beginning and the End.”

If Jesus is both the Beginning and the End, then He also has authority over everything in-between. This means that Jesus has a plan for history, and He directs the path of human events toward His designed fulfillment. Our lives are not given over to blind fate, to random meaninglessness, or to endless cycles with no resolution. Instead, Jesus Christ who is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End directs all of human history and even our individual lives.

He is the same today, yesterday, and forever…He is the One which is called “I AM” - He is, He was, and He is to come - THE ALMIGHTY!

Conclusion

Folks, if you are here lost today, you need to come to Jesus and be saved. One day, He will come and it will be too late then. Now, if the Lord has spoken to your heart on any level during this message, I invite you to come before Him and do whatever it is He is leading you to do.

We should be sure that we are ready to meet Him when He comes—

Matthew 24:44 “44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”

We should be in prayer for those who are not ready; and we should get busy and tell them how to be ready—

Mark 16:15 “15 ...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

We should realize that our time is short in this life and we should commit ourselves to doing all we can for Him while there is still time—

John 9:4 “4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.”

Is there something He would have you to do today?