Jesus, Be Big!
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It’s a book I’ve hesitated to preach and/or teach, not because it’s not good or worthwhile; on the contrary:
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
My hesitation in preaching/teaching this book of the Bible is the plethora of opinions and interpretive views. And, yes, I know what the word ‘plethora’ means. Let me illustrate.
While I was a student at Manhattan Christian College, I was the weekend preacher at a small country church: Barnes Christian Church in Barnes, Kansas.
One week during the Bible Study hour before worship, we were studying the book of Revelation. Of the 10 or so people there, we all took slightly different views from one another. Earl and Betty, Mel and Liz, John and Leona, Jim and Dot, and good ol’ Mabel all piped up with their view on the book (several of them more informed by that ridiculous ‘Left Behind’ series than the Bible).
I shared what I believed as an 18-19 year old Bible college student (which is to say I was still trying to figure it out and stumbling around).
We talked pre-millennial, post-millennial, preterist, amillennial and a bunch of other random thoughts.
That’s when John Mark spoke up. He said proudly, definitively, assertively: “I am a pan-millennialist.”
We all looked at him curiously. I was trying to think if I knew anything about that view; others asked him what that was.
John Mark smiled and said, “It’s simple: I believe it will all pan-out in the end. I’m a pan-millennialist.”
It was a much-needed light moment in a conversation that can get really heavy if you’re not careful.
No exaggeration: I’ve seen Bible studies on the book of Revelation nearly come to blows. People get really, really worked-up over this book, like “fightin’ mad” over this book. It’s whackadoodle.
There are so many strongly-held views when it comes to Revelation, so many misinformed views, so much confusion. There’s even a bit of fear when it comes to reading this book.
9-10 years ago, the Wednesday Night Bible Study here twisted my arm to go through Revelation. After a while, I agreed. I then promptly sat some ground rules.
There would be no fighting or arguing or mocking of another’s view.
Absolutely no reference to the ‘Left Behind’ series—the books or the movies.
It’s fiction, and not very good fiction at that. And yes, I’ve read them all and watched them all. Dozens of hours of my young life I’ll never get back. The best thing you can do with those books is roast s’mores over them, if you catch my drift.
Don’t call it “Revelations”. It’s “Revelation”, no ‘s’. It’s the revelation of Jesus Christ, singular. One revelation of Jesus Christ given to John. One. RevelatioN.
So, with those ground rules in place, we hit the ground running. I don’t know for sure, but I’d say it took us the better part of a year to get through Revelation in Bible Study.
For our purposes here at the start of a new year—2022—I plan to preach this book in 7 sermons.
I don’t want to get bogged down in the minutiae; I want to give us a general overview of the themes of the book.
I might post on Facebook some supplemental, more detailed material throughout the week. You’ll be able to read along or ahead, whatever you decide.
The primary reason for studying Revelation is how the book begins.
The fact that it’s the first Sunday of the New Year is rather appropriate; I can think of nothing more important than to make the focus of Revelation 1 the focus of our lives as individuals and as a gathered church.
The focus of Revelation 1 is that we would have a big view of Jesus, a proper view of Jesus, a Biblical view of Jesus.
Revelation 1 is perhaps the best picture we have of Jesus—especially for the time in which we live.
John grasps for every descriptor the Greek language can give him; what he sees is going to take every word he can bring to mind and every OT image he can borrow.
The end result is a true and proper picture of Jesus. That’s what we have here in Revelation 1.
More often than not, our picture of Jesus (mental or otherwise) falls woefully short of how the Bible describes Him.
If you believe Jesus is your buddy or your therapist or a good teacher, you’ll treat him just like that.
If you see Him smaller than He is, you’ll live as if He’s a small and inconsequential part of your life—just a Sunday morning thing...
If you believe He’s your buddy, you’ll treat Him like you do other friends. For too many of us, Jesus is a friend who doesn’t need to have access to every part of your life, a friend who doesn’t get to tell you what to do, a friend who doesn’t get to correct you.
Your friends, Jesus included, are just around for a good time. Your friends are supposed to go along with whatever you want to do, smile, and give you a pat on the back.
If Jesus is your ‘pal’ and nothing more, you’re gonna have problems.
J.B. Phillips wrote a book in 1961 entitled “Your God is Too Small”. I can’t think of a better title for a book or a more accurate diagnosis of what ails us as individuals and us as a church.
Our mental image of Christ isn’t big enough.
A number of people believe that Jesus was a pretty cool guy who had some miracles up His sleeve, but mostly (as Will Willimon writes) we picture Jesus as some “itinerant therapist who, for free, traveled about helping people feel better.”
That’s not the Jesus you’ll find in the Bible. That’s the version of Jesus you’ll find by tuning into Joel Osteen or by picking up any number of contemporary Christian living books.
Matt Proctor writes: “It’s not that we don’t think about Jesus; it’s that we don’t think big enough about Jesus. It’s like we’re seeing Him through the wrong end of the telescope—He looks smaller than He really is.”
Sad to say, for far too many of us, our picture of Jesus is way off. And when our picture of Jesus is off, our lives as His disciples will be off. Our churches will wander and veer off-course, following the world rather than the Word.
When we lose sight of Jesus, everything falters. Everything. Like Peter sinking beneath the waves, the church with a low- or improper view of Jesus will also drown.
We need a right picture of Jesus. Revelation 1 provides us with exactly that.
If you have your Bible (and I hope you do), please turn with me to Revelation 1. We’re going to read this a section at a time, so keep your Bible open in front of you. Let me challenge you here: you’ll be aided immensely by having your own Bible with you in worship. I encourage you to bring yours with you.
1 The revelation from 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 aloud 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.
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.
Because the time is near, we need to see Jesus as He has revealed Himself in the Bible.
Because the time is near, we need to see Jesus as He has revealed Himself in the Bible.
I believe this to be the crux of Revelation 1. This is Revelation 1 in a sentence.
John is writing this to the seven churches in the province of Asia.
These are the first readers, the first recipients of this letter. Not that there are only 7 churches in Roman Asia; there are way more.
John is using “seven” here as a symbolic number meaning “completeness.” This is a symbolic language (used extensively in Revelation and other apocalyptic literature).
This is addressed to the whole Church, both then and now.
John’s greeting here comes from all three Persons of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Spirit (Revelation presents the Holy Spirit as one person of the Trinity, but He also appears as “seven spirits”, representing the Holy Spirit’s perfection; the Holy Spirit is ever-present, all-knowing).
John describes God as Him who is, and who was, and who is to come. God is eternal—He has always existed and will always exist. He has no beginning and no end.
What’s more, God doesn’t just exist; God acts. He will come. God will one day come again in the person of Jesus, to bring about His eternal kingdom.
John identifies Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah. John pulls out his copy of the Psalms and turns to to Psalm 89 for a way to describe Jesus.
Jesus Christ is the One who came into the world to bear witness to the gospel, to bring salvation.
Jesus offered, not a sacrifice for our sins, but offered Himself. Jesus died for us. And then He rose from the dead—the firstborn—in order to obtain new life for the rest of God’s children. Jesus freed us from our sins by His blood.
Jesus is now exalted as King of kings. And a share in His kingdom is available to us who belong to Him. There are many ways in which believers represent OT priests.
We enter into God’s presence through the death of Christ, and do so directly. No mediator but Jesus is necessary.
We represent God to the world, testifying to who He is and to His eternal purpose.
We offer to the Creator the worship from His creation that is rightfully His—to Him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
This is how Jesus is described in the first few verses of this chapter. This is the picture of Him we need to have; this is the picture we need to hold onto.
John introduces the Lord who is speaking through him and gives a kind of pronouncement, a prophetic pronouncement:
7 “Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen.
When the Lord returns—and soon—every eye will see Him. There will be a universal revelation of Christ. This will be a day of victory for those who belong to Jesus and a day of defeat for Jesus’ enemies.
Because the time is near (hang on to that phrase from verse 3)—because the time is near we need a clear picture of Jesus—who He actually is, not whatever caricature we drawn of Him.
And so, for our benefit, Jesus introduces Himself to us in verse 8.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Jesus is the A and the Z (Alpha is the first letter of the Greek ‘alpha’bet and Omega is the last). Jesus is Himself God—the same designation given to God in verse 4, Jesus adopts for Himself because, of course, Jesus is God—who is, and who was, and who is to come.
Jesus is the Almighty—the Ruler of all things, the One who has all the power.
Because the time is near, we need *this* picture of Jesus. Jesus is not some weak, Mr. Rogers-type figure. He is gentle and kind, but He’s also all-powerful. There is nothing—NOTHING—outside His control.
15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Jesus is the beginning of all history; He is the Creator. And Jesus is also the goal for whom all things are made (all history is moving toward glorifying Him).
Because the time is near, we need to see Jesus as He has revealed Himself in the Bible.
Because the time is near, we need to see Jesus as He has revealed Himself in the Bible.
Matt Proctor, the president of Ozark Christian College, helped me to see the themes in the book of Revelation. It was eye-opening. And it’s clear to me that the point of Revelation 1 is seeing Jesus as He describes Himself.
A low view of God is a supremely dangerous thing. Matt writes this about the churches to whom Revelation was written:
“They (these first century churches) were apparently not the least bit uncomfortable in Christ’s presence. Their Jesus was tame and safe, and when you declaw the Lion of Judah, when you turn Him into a warm and fuzzy household pet, who is going to stop you from living however you want? When you no longer see Christ in His terrifying, soul-exploding holiness—you’re only one step away from sin.”
So, in Revelation 1, John fixes that.
John tells us it’s the Lord’s Day. It’s Sunday when John hears a voice (it’s Jesus’s voice), which sounds like a trumpet:
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.”
Jesus is standing among seven golden lampstands which represent the seven churches of Asia Minor.
He’s not some distant deity; He’s not “the man upstairs”. He is not far removed from our lives.
Jesus is in the midst of His people—born among us and with us always, to the very end of the age.
Jesus tells John to jot this down, so John writes what he sees—a description of Jesus:
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 The hair on his head was 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 coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
Jesus, according to John, looks like a son of man. John is echoing Daniel 7:13-14—a stunning vision of Jesus in all His authority.
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Jesus is not just some teacher who spent a few years with some fishermen for students. He is the One equal to the Ancient of Days.
John sees Jesus dressed in robe reaching down to His feet and with a golden sash around His chest.
This is the clothing of a king. No longer clothed like a Jewish rabbi. Jesus is now dressed royally, revealing His true identity—King of kings and Lord of lords, Almighty Sovereign of the Universe.
The hair on [Jesus’] head was white like wool, white as snow. Jesus isn’t frail or weak or aged. He is regal and wise and all respect and honor is due Him.
This is a symbol of His power, His deity, His dignity.
This Jesus has eyes like blazing fire. They pierce through our “shams and hypocrisies, looking into our innermost selves.”
His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace. This represents His strength and stability. He will not stumble, trip, falter. He is solid and immovable.
Jesus’ voice is like the sound of rushing waters. This is the expression Ezekiel used to describe the voice of God Himself (Ezekiel 43:2).
In Jesus’ right hand He held seven stars. He holds and is in charge of the angels of the seven churches (that’s what the stars stand for, according to Jesus in verse 20).
“He’s got the whole world in His hands” and much more besides. He holds all things together.
“Coming out of His mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword.” The sword was the weapon of Rome; it represented authority. Jesus possesses final and total authority.
He speaks the Word of God—salvation on the one hand, judgment on the other.
His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. Glory pours forth from Christ—the glory He had with God in the beginning (John 17).
Like leaving a dark room and walking outside on a sunny, summer day, to catch a glimpse of Jesus as He truly is, we’d be blinded by His radiance.
>Upon seeing this vision of Jesus, John falls facedown as though dead. The revelation of Jesus knocks John face down on the ground—John who had spent three years with Jesus as Jesus’ closest friend cannot stand, cannot catch his breath.
Jesus is bigger than we tend to think. Far bigger.
Jesus could, with a word, stop our planet from spinning or flick it like a marble three galaxies over. With the handful of syllables He used to create all things, Jesus could undo all things.
Jesus is clothed in glory and splendor, strength and majesty, power and majesty, now and forevermore.
Is this the picture of Jesus you have in your mind? If not, you need the book of Revelation.
“Jesus is not a kindly grandfather who tussles our hair when we misbehave and says, ‘Ah, boys will be boys.’ Jesus is not a smiling buddy who winks at our sin and lets us do what we want. He is a towering and furious figure who will not be managed. He is Lord. He is in the midst of His Church. He knows our sin. And He is big enough to do something about it.” -Matt Proctor
Jesus gives some concluding remarks about who He is. Listen:
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 now look, 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 needed a big vision of who Jesus is (as do we and the churches John is writing). And we have it.
The churches in Asia Minor at the time John is writing are really going through it. For their faithfulness to Jesus and His teachings, they’re taking a beating. Rejection from friends and family, job loss, threats to their lives, many of them martyred simply for putting more trust in Jesus than in Caesar.
The churches are being persecuted and they have little strength left. They’re afraid. Jesus reaches out His mighty right hand to comfort and encourage, as John Ortberg paraphrases:
“Don’t be afraid! It’s me! Jesus! You already know me. Don’t be afraid. The Son of Man, the Ancient of Days, the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Ruler of the kings of the earth, the One who conquered death. It’s me! It’s Jesus!
By the way, do you remember death and Hades? The ultimate enemies of humankind? Here are the keys; got ‘em from my Dad. No one who follows me is going to be trapped by death; I’ve got the keys. Death is no big deal; I was dead and it hasn’t slowed me down at all.”
If you’re afraid, discouraged, depressed, this is good news. Jesus, the Almighty, is with you. He’s far bigger, far greater, far more than you can imagine. You can’t wrap your head around Him, and that’s a good thing.
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” - A.W. Tozer
It’s time we recover our awe.
Walking into worship with the gathered saints to sing praise to the Lord is single most incredible thing we do each week. Nothing compares.
It shouldn’t be routine; it should be revolutionary. It should cause our hearts to race. To see and behold Jesus, to worship Him, to hear from Him through His Word, to be in the presence of Jesus, none other than the High King of Heaven—what an unspeakable privilege.
Jesus, Be Big!
Jesus, Be Big!
This is my prayer for Rich Hill Christian Church.
This is my prayer for you.
My prayer isn’t for you to accomplish all or your resolutions or meet your goals—not that some of those aren’t worthwhile.
My prayer for you is that you see who Jesus is more clearly and that your life would be overrun with the majesty and splendor and power of Jesus.
“Jesus, be big in this gathering and in the lives of those gathered here. Amen.”