When we open any book of the Bible and begin to study it, the first thing we want to do is get an over all view of the book and find out what its dominant theme is. If we can discover why the book was written and what its central theme is, it is not difficult to understand the various other things, which are dealt with in the book. When we open the Bible to the book of Revelation, we do not have to read past the first line to find out what the dominant, central theme of the book is. It is stated most plainly. These twenty-two chapters of inspired, picturesque language were written by the apostle John under the direction of God the Holy Spirit to give us "The Revelation of Jesus Christ." If we could simply put aside all the fanciful things we have heard about the book of Revelation and read it as a spiritual, symbolical revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, our beloved Savior. I am sure it would prove to be as full of comfort, instruction, and joy as the Gospel Narrative and the three Epistles which were written by this same beloved apostle John. Without question, John's visions in this blessed book were prophetic visions. They show us the ultimate triumph of our Savior and his glory in all things. But these visions are also practical words of instruction, filled with gospel truth for the edification of the church in every age. Throughout the prophecies of this book Christ is pictured as the victorious, conquering King, and his church is assured of ultimate conquest in him. As we open this, the final book of the Inspired Volume, let us pray that the Holy Spirit will give us eyes to see our blessed Savior in every line.
1. This Book is The Revelation of Jesus Christ – (v. 1) "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass." Jesus Christ is the Author of this Revelation. He is the One who showed it by his angel to John. It is the unveiling of the plan and purpose of God for the world, and especially for his church. It is Christ, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, who took the book and opened the seals of it, revealing to John and to us the eternal purpose of God (5:5). And the Lord Jesus Christ is the Subject of this Revelation. He is the One who does the revealing, and he is the One who is revealed. The book of Revelation sets forth the glory of our Savior's Person, the fulness of his grace, the wonder of his redemptive work, the mystery of his providential rule, and the efficacy of his mediatorial offices as our Prophet, Priest, and King.
This Revelation was given to Christ by God the Father. Obviously, being God the eternal Son there was no need for the Father to give any revelation to him. He is God, in everyway equal with the Father. But The Revelation was given to Christ as the God-man, our Mediator. It was put into his hands, in order that he might "shew unto his servants' things which must shortly come to pass." These things "must" come to pass because they were from eternity ordained of God by immutable, unalterable decree for the good of his church and the glory of his own great name. They began to be fulfilled very quickly often they were revealed, they are being fulfilled new, and they shall ultimately be fulfilled in the consummation of all things by the hand of God and for the glory of God (I Cor. 15:24-28; Eph. 1:10; Col. 1:20).
2. This Revelation was Made Known To and Recorded By The Apostle John (vv. 1-2). The Lord Jesus Christ sent his angel to his servant John to show him, by special visions, what these things were which must shortly come to pass. And John, being a faithful servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, recorded exactly what his Master revealed to him. This man John, who was the servant of Christ, identifies himself as the apostle John in verse 2. He is the one "who bare record of the Word of God." In the Gospel that bears his name gave a faithful account of Christ, the essential and eternal Word of God (John 1:1-5; I John 1:1-3). He also faithfully declared "the testimony of Jesus Christ." He clearly set forth the gospel of Christ, which is the testimony of his glories as God in human flesh, the explanation of what he accomplished in his death upon the cross, the declaration of abundant mercy and grace in him, and the announcement of his resurrection, ascension, dominion as King, and glorious second advent. This John, faithful servant that he was, also recorded "all things that he saw." As we read the Gospel and Epistle of John, he shows us what he saw in the earthly life and ministry of our Savior. He was an eyewitness of the Savior's majesty. John saw the Lord in the flesh, heard his words, witnessed his miracles and laid his head on the chest of Immanuel! John saw the transfiguration, the crucifixion, the piercing of the Lord's body, the resurrected Savior, and the ascension of him our God and Savior.
3. There Is A Blessing Promised To Those Who Read, Hear, and Keep The Words of This Prophecy – (v. 3). Whether read privately or in public, if you read this book with a desire to understand it, you will find it profitable to your soul. This book, like all the rest of Holy Scripture, is able to make you wise unto salvation (II Tim. 3:15-17). However, it appears that John is talking about the public reading of the Word of God in the worship services of the church. Though most churches have abandoned the practice, it was once customary to have a public reading of a large portion of Scripture every time the church met. This practice should be maintained in every local church. Nothing can be more important or more beneficial to the saints of God than the public reading of the Word of God. What John says of this book is true of the entire Volume of Inspiration. The one who reads this Book is blessed of God. The ones who hear this Book read are blessed of God. And the ones who, by faith in Christ, understand, retain, and obey that which is written in the Book of God are blessed, eternally blessed of God.
4. The Entire Book of Revelation is Addressed to The Seven Churches of Asia Minor (v. 4). In verses 4-6 John begins his letter to the seven churches with a salutation of grace and peace from three Persons of the Triune Godhead. These seven churches were literal assemblies in John's day. But they are representative of all the churches of our Lord in every age. Both the admonitions and consolations addressed to these seven churches are addressed to us. This is the thing I want you to see: This book is written to us, the church of God in 1986. It is not to be interpreted as though it were written for people in another generation. May God give us an ear to "hear what the Spirit saith to the churches."
Now look at the salutation as John gives it in verses 4-6. Proposition:John is here showing us that all grace and peace come to fallen, sinful men from the eternal God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, through the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ.
"Grace and peace" – These two things are all we need. These two great blessings fulfill every need sinners have before God and satisfy every desire of the renewed heart. Grace is God's free, loving favor bestowed upon those who deserve his wrath. It includes all the bounty of heaven: the pardon of sin, justification, eternal life, preservation, sanctification, and glorification. Peace, as William Hendriksen says, is "the reflection of the smile of God in the heart of the believer who has been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ." Peace is always the result of revealed grace. Those who know the grace of God also enjoy the peace of God. Grace and peace were predestined gifts of the Father, purchased and merited by the Son, and they are dispensed to God's elect by the Holy Spirit. John is showing us here the same thing that Paul shows us in Ephesians 1:3-14: The salvation of God's elect is an eternal work of covenant grace, agreed upon and performed by all three Persons of the holy Trinity (II Thess. 2:13-14; II Tim. 1:9-10; I Pet. 1:2; Jude 1).
"Grace and peace" come to believers from God the Father, "Him which is, and which was, and which is to come." That language is expressive of God's eternality and immutability. He is from everlasting to everlasting. God is now what he always was. He will forever be what he is now and what he always was, without any variableness or shadow of turning. The eternal God does not and cannot change. He is immutable (Mal. 3:6; Heb 13:8; James 1:17). These words could be properly applied to all three Persons in the Godhead; but in the context the reference is to the Father (Compare Ex. 3:14). God our Father, by an eternal, immutable decree, ordained that all his elect be heirs of grace and peace in the covenant of grace before the world was made (Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8:10-12; 10:16-17).
"Grace and peace" come to us also from God the Holy Spirit. The expression, "the seven spirits which are before his throne," refers to the Holy Spirit in the fulness of his operations and in the perfections of his work. I have never been greatly impressed by numerology, because it is usually carried to ridiculous extremes. But the number seven is used repeatedly throughout the book of Revelation, and it is not accidental. As the seven churches refer to the whole church, so the seven spirits refer to the completeness and perfection of God the Holy Spirit, especially in his works of grace. When the Spirit of God regenerates a dead sinner, gives him eternal life, and creates faith in his heart, he is bestowing the grace and peace, which God the Father promised in the covenant and God the Son purchased on the cross.
And "grace and peace" come to us from the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. We could never have obtained grace and peace from God had the Lord Jesus Christ not assumed our nature, lived as our Representative, died as our Substitute, and ascended back to heaven as our great High Priest. But since he has done all these things for us, grace and peace cannot be withheld from us. Those for whom grace was purchased must have grace. Those for whom peace was made must have peace.
Divisions:Now we have come to the object, which John seems to have had in his mind from the opening words of verse 1 – "The Revelation of Jesus Christ." And in verses 5-6 he answers three basic, fundamental, vital questions for us.
There was a man who appeared on the earth two thousand years ago. He lived only a short time, 33 years. And he died as a despised criminal on a Roman cross. His name was Jesus of Nazareth. Who is that Man? John tells us that he is Jesus, the Christ. Jesus is the name given to him by the angel. It means Savior, Deliverer. "Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins" (Matt. 1:21). And this Jesus is the Christ, God's promised Anointed One, the Messiah, the One set forth in the types and prophecies of the Old Testament, the long-awaited One, the Redeemer-King. This One, Jesus the Christ, is the Son of God and the Son of Man. He is Immanuel, the God-man, God and man in one glorious Person. He is as much God as though he were not man, and as much man as though he were not God. This God-man is "The Savior of the world" (I John 4:14). Someone said, "God could not suffer, and man could not satisfy, but the God-man both suffered and satisfied." Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, having both suffered the penalty of God's law and satisfied the claims of Divine justice, has saved his people from their sins!
A. Jesus Christ Is "The Faithful Witness" (John 8:14).These words describe our Savior's earthly ministry and prophetic office. He is God incarnate, the Word of God, the Revelation of God, the Embodiment of the eternal God-head (John 1:1-5, 14, 18; Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:1-3). No man knows God but by Christ, and know man comes to God but by Christ (John 14:6). And his witness is faithful and true.
NOTE: The revelation, the faithful witness of Christ, began in his earthly ministry; but it is carried on today by his Spirit through the ministry of the Word.
B. Then John tells us that Jesus Christ Is The First Begotten From The Dead (Col. 1:18).
Some others, such as Lazarus and the widow's son, had been raised from the dead by the power of God. But they all died again. When John says that Christ is the "first begotten from the dead: his meaning is:
1. Our Lord Jesus Christ was the first one to be raised from death to immortality.
2. Christ was the first one to raise himself from the dead by his own power (John 10:18). Indeed, he is the only one all others were and shall be raised by his Divine power.
3. Christ was raised from the dead as the first fruits of the resurrection (I Cor. 15:23). He was raised as the Representative of his elect and his resurrection is the pledge of ours.
4. This expression, "the first begotten from the dead," portrays our Savior in his Priestly office. He who died and made atonement for our sins rose again as our High Priest and opened for us the way of life, giving us acceptance with and access to God (Heb. 10:19-22).
C. Who is Jesus Christ? He is "the faithfulness, and the first begotten from the dead." And Jesus Christ Is "The Prince of The Kings of The Earth" (Phil. 2:9-11).
He is a Prophet like Moses, a Priest like Melchizedek, and a King like David. As the result of his death and resurrection as our Substitute, the Lord Jesus Christ has been exalted and given dominion over all flesh. He is King of kings and Lord of lords. All men, both great and small, are under the sovereign dominion of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is our Savior's mediatorial rule over all (John 17:2; II Pet. 2:1). (Isa. 53:10-12).
1. All men are ruled by him. The kings of the earth receive their crowns from him. And their hearts are in his hands (Pro. 21:1).
2. All men are accountable to him.
3. All men shall, sooner or later, acknowledge his rightful claims over them.
II. Having told us who Jesus Christ is, John's heart bursts out in a doxology, an ascription of praise to his beloved Master. In that doxology he answers this question – What Has Jesus Christ Done? He "loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father."
It is not John's purpose to tell us all that Christ has done for us. But he simply declares three things that our great God and Savior has done for his own elect. And these three things include all other things.
A. The Lord Jesus Christ Loved Us.Those who are loved by Christ with an everlasting love have been washed from all sin in the precious fountain of his blood. Actually, the word "washed" has a double meaning, "washed" and "loosed."
1. Christ washed away our sins when he poured out his life's blood upon the cross.
By his blood, his precious blood, our Savior made an atonement for our sins, justified us from all sin, and removed all sin from us, so that in the sight of God all his elect are fair, pure, and without spot (Mic. 7:18-19).
2. And Christ has loosed us from the guilt and dominion of sin by the application of his blood to our hearts (Heb. 9:14).
This is redemption both accomplished and applied. It was accomplished at Calvary and applied in regeneration.
C. And The Lord Jesus Christ Has "Made Us Kings And Priests Unto God His Father" (Ex. 19:6). All who believe are kings and priests unto God in Christ Jesus. 1. Every Believer is a king.John says, "to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen." That is to say, As God the Father has given Christ all pre-eminence, all glory, and all dominion; we gladly ascribe glory and dominion to him forever.
Throughout the book of Revelation, as throughout the entire Bible, all glory is ascribed to God in Christ. None is ascribed to any creature (4:8, 11; 5:9, 13, 7:10, 12; I Cor. 1:26-31).
Application: This is "The Revelation of Jesus Christ."As God the Father has put all things in the hands of his Son, so you must trust all things into his hands. We may safely trust him in all things and for all things.
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