A Picture Of Jesus, Our Champion (Revelation 1:9-20) Series

Everything we have in life, as Christians, we have in and through Jesus. Jesus is the one who rescued us from death, and sin, and slavery. Our sins are forgiven through his blood. Through him, we become part of God's family, and have access to God. Through him, we receive the Holy Spirit. So part of our natural response to all of this, is that we spend a lot of time thinking about Jesus, talking about Jesus, talking to Jesus, and worshipping Jesus. We don't do any of this exclusively. We don't lift up Jesus over the Spirit or the Father. But we absolutely lift up Jesus.

Now, when we do all of this, my guess is that most of us have a picture of Jesus in our minds. How do we picture him, today? What does he look like?

Several years ago, there was a Fox news anchor, Megyn Kelly, who became famous for reassuring her viewers that Jesus was, verifiably, a white male. And lots of people had a lot of fun interacting with her. Someone-- maybe Jon Stewart, or Stephen Colbert-- mockingly echoed her words. How could anyone forget that Jesus looked like your typical white-skinned, blue-eyed, Middle Eastern Jew?

I think what this segment showed, along with all the reactions to it, are that most people have a picture in their minds of Jesus. It's maybe not fully developed. They maybe aren't aware of what they're doing. But they have some picture. And that picture has become a part of how they view Jesus, and interact with Jesus.

In today's passage, Revelation 1:9-20, John sees Jesus for who he is. Now, this picture is in some ways symbolic, and not to be pressed literally. But if we take this picture seriously, while respecting its partially symbolic imagery, it will change us in all kinds of ways. It will change how we worship Jesus, how we pray. It will change how we understand what we are doing, when we lay hands on people in Jesus' name. And it will also change how we view the kingdoms of this world. So I think this picture is foundational, in many ways.

Let's start our passage by simply reading verse 9:

(9) I, John-- your brother and partner in the affliction and in the kingdom and in the steadfastness in Jesus-- I was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God

and the testimony about Jesus.

In verse 9, John begins by directly addressing his readers. He starts by describing himself, not in terms of any authority, or position, but by highlighting their shared connections with him. He is, first of all, their brother. In Christ, the people he is addressing are family. They are also his partners in three ways. (1) They suffer together. (2) They are in God's kingdom together. And (3) they are steadfastly faithful together. Specifically, this faithfulness revolves around evangelism. John is in exile on this island for telling people about Jesus. So this partnership between John and the churches runs deep. It includes the privileges that come with following Jesus, and it includes the hard parts of following.

This is a verse that really resonates with me. When you meet someone new, and find out they are a committed disciple of Jesus, you find that you have this instant connection with them. That person is truly your brother or sister in Christ. You know you have a shared identity, and a shared struggle ("tribulations"), and a shared purpose in life.

John then goes on, still in verse 9, to tell his readers where he was, when all of this happened to him. He was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony about Jesus. He was exiled on Patmos, as a result of his faithful service to God, and to Jesus.

When we read verse 9, I think it does two things to us. The first, is that it makes something rise up inside of us, that wants to live like John. And the second, is that it increases our respect for John. John isn't the kind of Christian who hangs his head in shame when someone talks about evangelism. He didn't keep his mouth shut, when conversations with coworkers or neighbors turns to religious stuff. John made the decision, that he would openly tell everyone about God and Jesus, regardless of what it cost him. John's faithfulness has been battle-tested. And that's how he ended up in exile, far away from everyone and everything. And his willingness to do this, regardless of the cost, makes John someone worth listening to. When battle-tested Christians speak, you listen carefully, and take their words seriously.

Verse 10:

(10) I was in/with the Spirit on the Lord's day,