THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST (REVELATION 1:1-7)
(Message by Tanny Keng)
1. Revelation
a) John wrote Revelation while a prisoner on the Island of Patmos, approximately 85-95 A.D. Its purpose is to give encouragement and hope for all Christians to continue watching for the return and triumph of the Lord Jesus Christ. It also is to warn of the Final Judgment that nonbelievers will endure on that Last Day.
b) John wrote that Revelation is special because,“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Revelation 1:3).
c) A brief view of the Book of Revelation. It gives you some basic understanding of the book of Revelation.
2. The Revelation Of Jesus Christ
Revelation 1:1-7
1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, 2 who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— 6 and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.
3. The Revelation From Jesus Christ
Revelation 1:1-7
1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, 2 who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— 6 and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.
3. The Revelation From Jesus Christ
a) Firstly, the book is "the revelation of Jesus Christ" in the sense that God gave its message to Jesus Christ, and it came from Jesus Christ as its true author.
b) In the first chapter of his book, John states exactly how the book came into being. God gave a revelation to Jesus Christ. Christ sent it by an angel to John, was shown the revelation in visions. In the Spirit, John wrote down an eye-witness and divinely inspired account of what he saw, and sent it to seven churches (Revelation 1:1-2, 9-11). That is a plain, straight-forward account of the book’s origin.
i) God to Christ.
ii) Christ to the angel.
iii) The angel to John.
iv) John (a prophet inspired by the Holy Spirit) to the churches.
4. The Revelation Of Who Jesus Is
a) Secondly, the book is the revelation of Jesus Christ in the sense that it is a testimony to who and what Jesus is.
b) For example in the first chapter John makes seven declarations about Jesus which may be safely regarded as truths that are represented in the visions (Revelation 1:5-7).
i) He is the Faithful Witness.
ii) He is the firstborn from the dead.
iii) He is the Ruler of kings.
iv) He loved us.
v) He made us to be a kingdom of priests.
vi) He has glory and dominion forever.
vii) He is coming with clouds.
c) These declarations are followed by a confirmation from the Lord himself: "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:8).
5. The Revelation Of Jesus Christ In The Future
a) Thirdly, the book is "the revelation of Jesus Christ" in the sense that it promises and portrays as its climax, the revelation of Jesus in the sky at his second coming. The book of Revelation directs one's mind to a greater revelation of Jesus Christ in the future. "Every eye will see him, even those who pierced him" (Revelation 1:7).
b) In the time frame of the visions, what they portray "will shortly take place... for the time is near" (Revelation 1:1, 3). We will discuss this shortness of time and nearness of Christ's coming at quite some length and detail as we study the book of Revelation.
c) Instead of reading a book of visions, one will experience his real presence as he comes, in the sky, with his mighty angels. All people of all nations, both the living and the dead, will stand before him to be judged on that day. Rather than reading what John saw, as one does now, one will then see with one's own eyes. And you will be there.
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