“The Great Unveiling: What Are You Looking For?”
Revelation 1:1-20
An older couple retired to bed for the evening. As they began to rest the grandfather clock downstairs began to chime. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. But this time it continued – thirteen, fourteen, fifteen. Hearing all fifteen chimes the husband sat up in wonderment. His wife asked, ”What time is it, Honey?” “I don’t know,” he replied, “but it’s later than it’s ever been before!” It’s later than it’s even been before. So we turn to the book of ‘Revelation’, often called the book of the future.
Yet of all the books in the Bible, ‘Revelation’ is the most debated. It bitterly divides the Church of Christ. There always has been, and always will be, controversy and unanswered questions. As we begin our study, what are you looking for? From the get-go I want you to know that not all your questions will be answered in this series, not all the pictures will be unscrambled, not everything will be cleared up. But, with your prayers, my prayerful study, and the moving of the Holy Spirit we can be a better, stronger people because of this effort. I pray that it will be so.
This morning it’s my task to introduce this book to you. Most of what we see in this first chapter will occur again and again in various forms. Certain key themes and issues will keep appearing. That means today is extremely important because it will set the tone for all that is to come. Let’s look, then, at Chapter 1.
We discover, in verses 1-3, that ‘Revelation’ is a VISION OF ENCOURAGEMENT. John, in verses 1 & 2, points to the BASIS OF ENCOURAGEMENT. He begins, “The revelation . . .” The word is ‘apocalypso’, from which we get the English word ‘apocalypse.’ No matter what we’ve heard to the contrary, the basic meaning of the word is an uncovering or an unveiling. This letter is primarily AN UNVEILING, and uncovering, a drawing back of a veil. We will see something more than we’ve seen before. It’s like the unveiling of a statue in honor of someone – when the covering is lifted people see an image they know yet have never really seen before. Perhaps even more fittingly, it reminds us of the curtain in the Jerusalem Temple being torn in two at the death of Christ. It was an uncovering, or a drawing back, an unveiling of that which had hindered our access to Christ.
So this letter is not designed to cover up and hide; it’s not meant to be mysterious. Certainly there are symbols, but like our sacraments the SYMBOLS POINT TO A GREATER REALITY. Anyone who, for example, gets hung up on the literal nature of the bread and wine will never understand or appreciate the communion celebration. Likewise anyone hung up on an exact, literal interpretation of the symbols in ‘Revelation’ will never understand or appreciate its message.
John continued: “The revelation of Jesus Christ. . .” First and foremost all THE CONTENT ORIGINATES IN, AND POINTS TO, JESUS CHRIST. ‘Revelation’ is primarily about Jesus! It reveals Him in all His glory carrying out His plan for the ages. Let’s not let the details and our questions obscure the key figure – Jesus Christ. Jesus will not answer all our questions but He will become our answer. Through this great unveiling we will come to know Christ better; we will learn what Christ is up to and how He works.
“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants what must soon take place.” Jesus, while on the earth, said He did not know the times or seasons of judgment – that only His Father knew. Now He is with the Father and has a better idea of what’s ahead for the world for which He died. This is what He’s prepared to share with us. As for the “SOON”, IT DENOTES THE SPEED WITH WHICH, NOT THE TIME AT WHICH, things will happen; not how soon, but the rapidity of execution. Like a tachometer, it measures velocity. Keep in mind throughout our study that while it’s later than it’s ever been before, God’s time is different than ours – with Him a thousand years are as a day.
What we will learn is that history is not a series of unrelated events; HISTORY NOT HAPHAZARD, BUT A DIVINELY DECREED ORDERING of that which must come to pass. History deals with the conflicts between faith and unbelief, evil and righteousness, Christ and Satan. That’s nothing new. But this is the last time God chose to reveal it so He does so with unforgettable splendor. He wants it imprinted, tattooed, on our hearts and minds. What a basis for encouragement! We will meet Jesus Christ and His plans for today and tomorrow, knowing they’re all in His hands! As Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:11: God “Works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we…might be for the praise of his glory.” Throughout our study, we will do a lot of praising!
And this basis is followed, in verse 3, by a BEATITUDE OF ENCOURAGEMENT. John wrote: “Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it…” While all Scripture leads to blessing, this is the only book that PROMISES A SPECIAL BLESSING for those who take it to heart and who obey. It is not limited to some specific historical situation – the only limitation is that it’s to those who read, hear, and obey. In other words, only if we come with open hearts can we gain understanding; only if we come with more than mere curiosity, only when we come with a desire to learn and obey, to discover principles for our lives can we be blessed. This is NOT WRITTEN FOR SPECULATION, BUT FOR PREPARATION. ‘Revelation’ was first sent to, and read by, people and churches undergoing great persecution. They needed encouragement – and so do we. ‘Revelation’ is relevant to our daily struggles, hassles, fears, and problems. It’s written to give us the encouragement to remain faithful – no matter what the cost. It is not about the end of the world per se, but calls us to obey while anticipating that end. I pray this great encouragement will fill our hearts!
The late Donald Grey Barnhouse said it so well: “We are living in the strangest days that man has ever known. The world has passed through terrible times before, but never has the whole earth been so bound together in this wild plunging through one catastrophe after another as today. There have been wars down through the ages, but never wars that have touched so many nations as the conflicts through which we have passed in this generation. There have been political crises, but not on a scale that touched all of the continents. Civilization has brought so many new means of communication that the matters which affect one nation affect all . . . The book of Revelation is the book for the present hour. There is a special blessing promised to those who read it and to those who hear it and treasure the truth that God has seen fit to give us.” (1)
The second thing we discover in this 1st chapter is that this is a VISION OF EXPECTATION. In verses 4-6 we get A SALUTATION. Verse 4 says the salutation comes from “him who is and who was and who is to come.” What is the most important thing you can know about God? His love? His patience? Power? Omniscience? Forgiveness? How about the fact that HE IS THE GOD WHO IS – always has been and always will be. He is! What great expectations that gives – especially to people and churches undergoing persecution! God is! What great expectations it gives us in our difficult times of life! God is here. Even as He was in the beginning, and will be at the end, so He is here now! Through Jesus He is the creator, sustainer, and director of life. Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith! “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. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Col. 1:16-17)
And the salutation comes also from “the 7 spirits before His throne.” We need to note right now that ‘7’ in ‘Revelation’ STANDS FOR COMPLETENESS, FULLNESS, PERFECTION. Here it reminds us that the Holy Spirit – sent by Christ at Pentecost – is within us in all His fullness! He will help us understand and live!
And in verse 5 we again meet JESUS CHRIST, this time as THE “FAITHFUL WITNESS” – He witnessed perfectly to God; He showed us who God is. And He is THE FIRST-BORN OF THE DEAD. His resurrection to glory was not the last but the first! That means more will be born from the dead. What an expectation for those, like the initial hearers of this letter, who were faced daily with death! We will die – but we will rise again to glory with Jesus! In our day of political and economic unrest, we so desperately need to remember Jesus is the ruler in charge! Are finances tight? He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Are you grieving? He is the true Comforter. Does your future seem uncertain? He’s prepared it with you in mind! Is your life filled with strife? He offers you His peace. Does your life seem out of control? He rules! Jesus is not sending us a puzzle to solve, but is sending us grace and peace for life. Before anything happens to us and around us, He assures us that we are covered by His presence! What a salutation! The presence of God in all His fullness! We can expect it!
The second expectation is in verse 7: “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be!! Amen.” There will be A GREAT SEEING. Jesus is coming again to usher in the new age. The first time He came He was veiled as a child; the next time He comes it will be unveiled and abundantly clear to all. The first time He came only a few attended His arrival; the next time He comes every eye shall behold Him. The first time He came as a baby; the next time He will come as sovereign King and Lord to consummate and complete His rule. He will come in judgment. That’s why those who pierced Him, those who rejected Him, will mourn – they will know they were wrong. They will see Him for who He is! And the animals will lie down together, nations will beat their swords into plowshares, and there will be no more crying, pain, sorrow, or death anymore! There will be only life!
Note that IT WILL BEGIN WITH JUDGMENT. It is sufficient to notice for now that every eye will see Him return – there will be no doubt! And it will affect all of us; we shall all stand before Him at the throne of judgment! Be sure to read passages such as MATTHEW 24:27-30 AND LUKE 21:25-28. They do not tell us when He will come but how, and what it will be like. We will know it; all will see it!
In ‘Revelation’ these judgments are rendered on: the church; the beast, false prophets, kings and armies at what is called Armaggedon; the devil; the spared nations; rebellious people and nations; and the unsaved. But in them all we will discover the hope of God’s people! For the book is ultimately one of TRIUMPH OF GOOD OVER EVIL. This is a book through which we can expect to be judged! Yet we are told not to fear but to look up because we know our redemption is drawing nigh! And that is another key to ‘Revelation’ – there is great and devastating judgment, but there is also great salvation! (We’ll deal with much more of this later!)
In addition to the salutation and the seeing, our third expectation is for our SECURITY. Verse 8 introduces the ALPHA AND OMEGA, and then repeats the “one who is, who was, and is to come.” The difference is that here it is said even more strongly. Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters in the Greek alphabet. As written here it includes all the letters in between as well. It’s one more assurance that Jesus is not like a parent who drops her child off at the beginning of a day only to return at night again. Rather He still is with us as He works out His plan for the ages! HE IS THE ONLY CONSTANCY IN HISTORY, from beginning to end. Without ‘Revelation’ the Bible would not be complete. The Bible is like a belt – it’s no good until the two ends are buckled together. Genesis is completed by the book of Revelation. The tangled threads of Bible history flow into Revelation like the Mississippi River flows into the Gulf of Mexico. In Genesis, we find the entrance of sin and the curse; In Revelation, its end. In Genesis, we find the dawn of Satan and his activities and in Revelation his doom. In Genesis, the Tree of Life is relinquished and in Revelation, it's regained. In Genesis, death makes its entrance and in Revelation, its exit. Genesis records the beginning of sorrow and in Revelation, it's banished. (2)
For now, suffice it to say that a major theme is that the world which began in harmony and peace will end that way. Yes, there’s tribulation now; but Jesus will show us what He meant when He said, “In the world you will have tribulation . . .but I have overcome the world!”
So what are you looking for, not only in ‘Revelation’ but in life? Gusto? A coke and a smile? To ‘have it your way?’ A ‘Slim Fast’ figure? A piece of the rock? The “good life?” Or something absolute, certain, lasting – the one thing or person that will not change? This is the choice we will need to make again and again. The right choice will grant us this security. We can expect it. The expectation of salutation, seeing, and security!
Following these words of encouragement and expectation is the VISION OF three dynamic EXPERIENCES. The writing of this book was a dynamic experience for John. He had been (9-11) EXILED TO PATMOS, a barren, forlorn, lonely island. Keep in mind that ‘Revelation’ is not being penned by some fanatic in an ivory tower, isolated from life; but by John, the apostle, ISOLATED FOR HIS FAITH! Even in his nineties, John was witnessing enough, and doing enough damage to the politicians of his day, that they exiled him – they sent him to Patmos to get rid of the “old man”. (I wonder if we’ve ever been doing enough to be exiled?)
And there on that deserted island HE WAS TAKEN UP IN THE SPIRIT. His geographical limits were no hindrance to him. His spirit was not in exile! God meets us in our troubled circumstances! As Jack Hayford wrote, we are never located where He cannot find us and can never be so bound that the Spirit can’t lift our soul with hope! (3) Yet how many burning bushes, how many blaring trumpets, how many booming voices have we missed because we’ve taken our eyes off the Spirit and focused them somewhere else? What Peter said will be true: (I Pt. 4:12-14): “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and
of God rests upon you.”
And there, in the midst of John’s Patmos experience, there was a CONFRONTATION WITH THE PERSON of Jesus Christ. Verses 12-16 give us a majestic picture of the glorified Christ! Words are inadequate to describe what He saw. All we know for sure is He was the “Son of Man,” first seen in ‘Daniel’, before whom all nations and people will bow! Christ is more fully revealed and exalted in ‘Revelation’ than in any other Bible book! From here on JESUS IS CENTRAL. For our purposes now, the brief description of Jesus includes: His white HAIR AND His HEAD, which stand for PURITY, WISDOM, AND DIGNITY; His EYES and FLAME OF FIRE, which show His ABILITY TO DISCERN AND PENETRATE and have intimate knowledge of people and nations – it reflects His ability to get at the motives of the heart, to hold everyone accountable; His FEET are FIRM AND HOLY TO TRAMPLE SIN; He HOLDS in His hands the CHURCHES He has appointed – they are UNDER HIS CARE AND AUTHORITY; and the SWORD stands for the POWER OF HIS WORD TO SAVE OR SLAY, to cut off sin from man or to cut man off in his sin. Our task is not to try to draw a picture, but to be so overwhelmed by His glory and power that we will fall speechless before Him. Then we can hear. We, too, need to experience a person.
And when in our Patmos we experience this glorious person, we’ll experience His PROMISE. John, in 17-20, was so overwhelmed that he fell at Jesus’ feet. As he looked at Christ the things of earth grew strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. As N. T. Wright eloquently put it, “To see Jesus as he is would drive us not to snuggle up to him, but to fall at his feet as though we were dead.” (4) But notice that Jesus put forth His right hand and touched John. The RIGHT HAND is one of AUTHORITY, the hand with which Jesus healed, raised from the dead, and broke bread. It is the hand with the power of blessing. And with that hand He reached out and touched John and said, “Fear not!” It was the same “fear not” John had heard so often in his life! And now he heard it again!
And why can Jesus still offer this peace? Because He descended into hell, arose, and ascended to Heaven; in doing so He obtained the keys to Heaven and hell. The keys are in His possession. He alone has the authority of life and death. He alone holds the keys to both the destiny of the world and to our destinies. He alone can send us to hell or take us to a room prepared in Heaven. IT IS CHRIST WITH WHOM WE HAVE TO DEAL. Hebrews 4:13 puts it: “And before him no creature is hidden, but all are open and laid bare to the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” But, praise God, we have His promise, “Fear not. Your destiny is in My hand!”
So by studying Revelation we will gain, by the help of Christ’s Spirit, encouragement; we will develop great expectations; and we will have tremendous experiences with Christ. What a great revival there will be if we choose to live by this book. As N. T. Wright pointed out, “To grasp all this requires faith. To live by it will take courage. But it is that faith, and that courage, which this book is written to evoke.” (5) So we will depend upon the Holy Spirit, for He alone can lead us through the deep things of God. He must be our guide. Let us all be in prayer.
Theodore Epp put it well in the beginning of his commentary on ‘Revelation’. (6) He said – and I say to you – if this series does not make Christ mean more to you, either: 1) I’ve failed (in the worst way, I might add), or 2) The Holy Spirit has not been able to get through to you. The first part is up to me; pray for me. The second part is up to you; pray for yourself. I’m looking forward to being more conformed to Christ’s glorious image. What are you looking for? Remember it’s later than it’s ever been before. Let us pray!
(1) Revelation – God’s last Word, Donald Grey Barnhouse, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI © 1971 by Zondervan Publishing House, 9th printing 1981, p. 13
(2) Mattoon's Treasures
(3) “When You Feel You’re at the End”, Jack Hayford, Preaching Today, Tape 246
(4)Revelation for Everyone, N. T. Wright, Westminster, John Knox Press, Louisville, KY, © 2011 by Nicholas Thomas Wright
(5) Ibid, p. 9
(6) Practical Studies in Revelation, Vol. 1, Theodore H. Epp, Back to the Bible Broadcast, Lincoln, Nebraska, © 1969 The good News Broadcasting Association, Inc., p.13
