"The Lord Jesus Unveiled" Revelation 1. Sunday, June 8, 2014.

- Before we can jump in & start looking at the seven churches of Revelation & Christ's message for them, we need to ask, what is this book all about?

- In the opening verse of this book the apostle John declares it to be, "the revelation of Jesus Christ." So, this book is about Jesus Christ.

- But what is a revelation?

- A revelation is a revealing, uncovering or unveiling of something hidden or obscured from sight or understanding.

- What kind of literature is the book of Revelation?

- It is prophecy, John says, and it is in the form of a letter or epistle, but most importantly, it is apocalyptic literature.

- What is apocalyptic literature?

- Filled with numbers, symbols & descriptions, this style of writing is like a code which those who have the key can understand so that enemies would not understand its message.

- It is not written to conceal God's message, but to reveal it in profound ways which make the reader/listener think.

- Apocalypses like Revelation were written in tough times & always point to God & demonstrate his glory, anticipating his intervention, the destruction of evil, & the final ushering in of the kingdom of God.

- What was the church going through when John wrote this book?

What is the history behind the book?

- The church was persecuted throughout the Roman empire:

- First, by the Jews because the Jewish leadership decided a few short years before John's exile on Patmos that Christianity was unlawful & would not be recognized as a Jewish sect;

- Second, by Rome, since they were no longer a Jewish sect, Christians were no longer exempt from the Roman cult of Caesar, Rome would require Christians to offer incense to Caesar & declare, Caesar is Lord.

- Why did John write Revelation? For what purpose did Jesus give John this revelation?

- The persecuted Church of the Roman Empire needed the reassurance of Christ's sovereign lordship over the church & over history; the church needed to know that God was still in control.

- The entire book is most assuredly an unveiling of the Lord Jesus Christ as Lord of history & Lord of the church.

- Let's keep asking more questions so that we can continue to get a clear sense of what today's passage meant for the church of John's day & what it means for us today.

- How did John introduce Jesus & why is it important?

- John introduced Christ as the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, & the ruler of all the kings of the world. Let's look at these titles John gave Jesus.

- 1.) The faithful witness (martyr). It is no coincidence that the Greek word for witness is the same word we have borrowed for those who die for their faith, martyr.

- In the face of his own martyrdom, the Lord Jesus remained a faithful witness & He calls his church to the same faithful witness.

- Since the Lord Jesus came into the world to witness, martyr, to the truth, then we, the church, also must be faithful witnesses, martyrs, to the truth.

- 2) The firstborn from the dead.

- Faced with Jewish persecution & even death for their loyalty to Christ, the early church needed encouragement.

- Many Christians faced death because of their faith. They needed a strong reminder that the Lord Jesus who died is the firstborn of the dead, i.e., he is not going to be alone in His resurrection. All who die in him will be raised to life.

- Just as the churches of Asia, modern-day Turkey, needed the courage that only Christ's victory could bring, so to we need that same encouragement.

- Unless he comes again during our lifetime, all our lives will end. We will all face death.

- What does it mean to you that our Lord is the living one, alive forever & ever?

- When we are persecuted or even discouraged, we may be tempted to throw in the towel, but Christ's victory calls us to endure.

- 3) The ruler of all the kings of the world.

- The oppression carried out against the church by worldly rulers & authorities pales when compared to knowing that God rules the rulers.

- Jesus is King of kings & Lord of lords (Rev. 17:14; 19:16).

- He is Lord of history. When worldly authorities reign with injustice & oppression, the church needs to be reminded that God is in control.

- "He directs the affairs & destinies of nations" (Stott, Rev.1-3, 15).

- As Paul wrote to the Philippians, "every knee will bow ... & every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:10).

- His faithful witness, his resurrection victory, & his rule remind us of his great love for us.

- When we are reminded of his continual love, our faith is sustained & we can live for him.

- How should we, the church, respond to the wonderful truth that Jesus Christ is Lord?

- First, we need to respond, as John did, with genuine worship. (Read 5b-8)

- We, the church, have free access to God's personal presence to bring to him spiritual sacrifices of worship & service to others administering the love of God.

- Second, we need to respond as witnesses, testifying about Jesus Christ.

- As priests to God freed from sin by Christ's blood, we the church are uniquely qualified to testify as star witnesses who have received & experienced the love of God.

- Because Jesus is Lord, I can obey him victoriously no matter what.

- With the beginning of verse nine, we come to John's vision of Christ & the final section of today's passage of Scripture.

- Before we go on, consider this: How do I see Jesus? How do I picture him? Is he gentle Jesus meek & mild? Is he the Jesus I used to picture in Sunday school when I was a child?

- Jesus reveals himself as he is to everyone who reads, hears and obeys the words of the prophecy of this book & the Jesus we find in Revelation is so much greater than the one we often imagine.

- It was Sunday, the Lord's day, & John was worshiping, in the Spirit, when all of a sudden he heard a voice like a trumpet blast:

- Write in a book everything you see, & send it to the seven churches in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, & Laodicea. (Rev. 1:11).

- These seven churches represent all churches, & the seven also represent all that Jesus had to say as a last word to the whole church for the approaching days of trial.

- John turned to see who was speaking with such a voice & he saw seven golden lampstands & standing in the middle of them, someone like a son of man, a human being, but the person John saw was not just a man.

- Those words, son of man, call to mind the words of Daniel 7:13-14, "As my vision continued that night, I saw someone like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient One & was led into his presence. He was given authority, honor, & sovereignty over all the nations of the world, so that every people of every race & nation & language would obey him. His rule is eternal – it will never end. His kingdom will never be destroyed.

- This Son of Man is none other than the risen Christ.

- How often do we picture Jesus as John saw him?

- The long robe & golden sash signify royal authority, as God's appointed high priest, king, & judge.

- His presence in the middle of the lampstands point to God's presence among the churches.

- His white hair shows his divine wisdom & fiery eyes the judgment of all evil.

- His feet like bronze glowing in a furnace represent his great power, & the voice like many waters portrays his authority. When he speaks, nothing but he can be heard.

- That he holds the seven stars speaks of his protection over the churches.

- The sharp two-edged sword represents the power & force of his message.

- His face, brilliant like the sun, points to his overwhelming holiness.

- John responds to this awesome vision of Christ by falling on his face in worship, as though dead, but the Lord Jesus said to John what God always says to those who trust him, fear not!

- Fear not, said Jesus, I am the first & the last.

- Fear not, said Jesus, I am the living one. I died, but look – I am alive forever & ever.

- Fear not, said Jesus, I hold the keys of death & the grave.

- Because of Christ's power & his declaration that he is the great I am, we must not fear when it comes to doing what he asks.

- Because Jesus is Lord, I can obey him victoriously no matter what.

- As he said to John, Write down what is now happening & the things that will happen.

- This is a message Christ wants John to share. It is a message for today & a message for the future.

- What of the mystery of the seven stars & seven lampstands?

- The stars, said Jesus, are the angels/messengers of the seven churches.

- These messengers are human beings because the messengers in chapters 2 - 3 receive some rebukes from Christ.

- We must understand these messengers as church leaders only in these first three chapters.

- The lampstands, said Jesus, are the seven churches.

- What Christ wants the churches to remember most keenly is that he is standing among them.

- He is present, & nothing is outside of his control.

- Because Jesus is Lord, I can obey him victoriously no matter what.

- Jesus declared his followers to be the light of the world.

- "But," as John Stott said, "the church's light is as borrowed as the moon's. If the stars are to shine & the lamps are to burn, they must remain in Christ's hand & in Christ's presence" (Stott, Rev. 1-3, 17).

- In verse two of our passage for this morning, the apostle John has claimed that this book is the word of God & the testimony of Jesus Christ.

- If that is true, & I believe that it is, then we must allow these words to penetrate our lives deeply, impacting our faith in Christ, & strengthening our will to follow him. No matter the cost!

- Over the next several weeks we are going to dig into what the glorified Lord Jesus had to say to seven churches & he not only spoke to them, but he is speaking to us & we must remember:

- Because Jesus is Lord, I can obey him victoriously no matter what.