THE REVELATION OF JESUS (B)
Revelation 1: 9-20
What does Jesus look like?
Helen Howarth Lemmel (1864-1961) was born in Great Britain to a Methodist pastor who moved his family to the United States when Helen was a child.
She went on to become a famous Christian singer and composer, and taught voice at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. In 1918 a friend gave her a pamphlet containing these words: So then, turn your eyes upon him, look full into his face and you will find that the things of earth will acquire a strange new dimness.
Impressed with these words, Helen wrote words and music for a wonderful gospel song, “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus.”
This song catches the impact that the vision of Christ in Revelation can have on our lives.
Christian artists throughout the centuries have been unable to avoid the urge to portray what Jesus looked like. Most often paintings and sculptures reflect the culture, class, and ethnic identity of the artist.
Michael Green, in his book Who Is This Jesus? makes a suggestion as to what Jesus might actually have looked like:
He was a Palestinian Jew, and as such the color of His skin would be olive, His eyes brown, and His nose hooked. Palestinian Jews had black hair and usually wore it long and carefully groomed. They valued a full beard, and it appears on many of the coins of the day... He wore a sleeveless undergarment with a girdle, the customary cloak and sandals, and carried a staff of journeys. That is all we know about His appearance or can guess with confidence.
But the Gospels have no interest in these things. They are profoundly disinterested in His size, the color of His eyes, and hair, and even His age and strength. These external things are unimportant. What a man is like stems from his character, and here the Gospels are eloquent.
In our study we are not overly concerned with Jesus’ physical appearance as there is little value in that. We gain spiritual strength from observing that Jesus stands among the churches, present with his people to help them in their time of need.
Revelation may not satisfy our curiosity concerning Jesus’ outward appearance, but it provides all the hope and encouragement we could ask for with its eloquent symbols letting us feel and connect with who he really is.
vs 9
The Apostle John was the oldest living disciple of our Lord at the time of this writing. He was probably esteemed as the most revered saint of his day. Instead of attracting attention to himself of his position, he immediately identifies himself with his fellow believers in the Lord.
John identifies himself as a brother and companion to the seven churches to whom he writes.
He partakes in three things with his readers, the suffering, the kingdom and the patient endurance that are ours in Jesus.
John is a companion in the suffering (tribulation KJV). The Roman emperor Domitian regarded Christianity as a threat to the empire, so he persecuted the church relentlessly. Early believers were well acquainted with persecution and suffering, all because of their faith in Jesus. This suffering or tribulation is not, as some believe, the great tribulation that is to come.
2nd, he is a companion in the kingdom. The kingdom in not Rome. It is the kingdom of God that is in each one of us. The kingdom has been God’s plan for man from the beginning. John knew that God had a plan for his suffering.
3rd patient endurance that are ours in Christ. Patient endurance = perseverance! Occupying until He comes.
It is the believers witness and their radical love in all spheres of life that produces the conflict with the powers of the world. Long-suffering (perseverance) is the mark of Christ’s kingship in our lives.
Jesus’ power does not crush the opposition now, but uses suffering to test and purify the loyalty of his servants. Paul says that “His strength is made perfect in our weakness” 2 Corinthians 12:19.
Patmos is a tiny island, ten miles long and six miles wide at it’s north end, about 45 miles southwest of Ephesus. It was an island used for Roman penal purposes.
Eusebius, the church historian, mentions in his writings that John was banished to the island in 95 A.D. by Domitian and released eighteen months later by Nerva.
John was banished because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. In the natural this would have been a major setback, but God allowed him to go to Patmos to receive the contend to the book of Revelation.
Who says nothing good comes from suffering?
vs 10
The Lord’s day by John’s time had become the Christian way to refer to the first day of the week, Sunday, in honor of Jesus’ resurrection. From the earliest times, Christians have met for worship on this day.
John was probably having his own worship service when something extraordinary happened. He was in the Spirit.
Every Christian lives in two locations. John was on the island and he was in the Spirit. He had an earthly environment as well as a heavenly environment. Paul admonishes us to walk in the Spirit. John was definitely doing that.
This marks the beginning of four visions that John has described in our book.
This vision begins not with sight but with sound: a loud voice like a trumpet. The first of many times that John will use “like” or “as” for a direct comparison.
This is the voice of the risen Jesus, whom he was about to see.
vs 11
Jesus commands John to write on a scroll, the form in which books existed in those days.
Sheets of paper handmade from the papyrus plant were glued into strips about a foot wide and as long as thirty feet and then rolled up. These scrolls were all handwritten.
The seven cities mentioned (more later) had been evangelized directly or indirectly through Paul’s ministry. Paul himself had written letters to Ephesus and Laodicea (Colosians 4:16). We will speak more on each one in the next two chapters.
vs 12
John turned to look and see who was speaking to him. The first thing he saw was the seven golden lampstands. In vs 20 Jesus tells John that these lampstands represent the seven churches. Thus they are seven separate lampstands, not the seven branched lampstand made by Moses (Exodus 25: 31-37).
In the Old Testament the Lampstand represented Israel, now each lampstand represents one of the Christian churches.
Just as lampstands bring physical light to the darkness, so Christ’s churches bring spiritual light to a wicked world (Matthew 5:14).
vs 13-16
The exalted Jesus appears in glorious form. The seven churches needed to know that Christ was still in their midst. But the attention here is not on the churches, but on Jesus who is in their midst.
John goes on to list ten details of Jesus that are most descriptive. Notice that only the stars and the lampstands are interpreted for us.
Why? Because the Holy Spirit has already interpreted these details on other occasions in scripture.
1st one like the son of man this identifies Jesus as maintaining his essential humanity even in his exalted state. In his gospel, John records that Jesus often called himself “son of man” which makes it unmistakable that who John sees in the same Jesus.
I believe that what John saw was the same Jesus that Daniel did (7: 13) in his vision.
This same Jesus that John saw once lived and walked in Galilee is now described as glorious and powerful beyond imagination.
2nd dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet This was typical of the long robe of the high priest as they ministered in the Temple. Hebrews tells us that Jesus in our High Priest, that is continuously interceding for us.
3rd golden sash around his chest this belt or band of pure gold was a mark of triumphant royalty. Not only is Jesus our High Priest , He is our King as well.
4th his head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow The whiteness of his hair represents absolute purity and the dazzling splendor of his holiness. In the ancient world, white hair symbolized the respect due to the aged for wisdom. Jesus is omniscient. He knows what is best for his people, even when they are suffering.
5th his eyes were like blazing fire This speaks of His penetrating wisdom and His righteous judgement. It also means that Jesus sees everything there is to see (Psalm 139). This refers to His omnipresence.
I believe that John is making it clear that all the attributes of the Father, which the Old Testament visions describe, are also attributes of the Son.
6th his feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace The bronze speaks of judgement as did the brazen alter of the Temple where sin was judged.
These powerful feet of Jesus point to his ultimate triumph over all the forces of evil, natural and supernatural alike.
His hair symbolizes omniscience, his eyes his omnipresence, and his feet represent his omnipotence.
7th his voice was like the sound of rushing water In vs 10 His voice is compared to a trumpet which could not be ignored, now it is the sound of rushing water (i.e. water fall, Niagara, Iguazu) which also cannot be ignored.
Men today ignore his voice, but in that day all other voices will be stilled by the deafening, overpowering voice of the Son of God.
The church and the believer can hear his voice today, if they will listen.
8th in his right hand he held seven stars vs 20 says the stars are the seven angels of the seven churches. Some believe that this refers to a guardian angel for each congregation. Most scholars believe this refers to the massagers of Pastors of the local churches.
Which ever one of these it is, the message is that Jesus sovereignly holds these persons in his protection and care.
9th out of his mouth came a sharp double-edger sword This is the strangest part of the picture. The sword is the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. The spoken word of Jesus will go forth as a sharp sword against which there will be no defense in the day of judgement (19:15).
10th His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance The element of the vision John noted last, probably because is was the most important, Jesus’ face. Jesus’ face was like the sun in all its strength.
John, along with Peter and James, saw a part of it on the mount of transfiguration. Paul fell off his horse on the road to Damascus and was blinded by it. Moses was not able to see the fullness of his glory.
John now sees Jesus in the fullness of His glory.
Notice what happens immediately. John makes the only right response that we can make to the direct appearance of God, he falls at his feet as though dead.
When God manifests himself, worship must follow. Worship then is followed by blessing. The powerful right hand now blesses John. The powerful voice now speaks comfort.
Four things now mentioned. Jesus has power over...
...time. Jesus is master from before the beginning of time until after the end of time and through all eternity.
...life He is the creator and sustainer of all life. Because he has unending life, he has the power to extend eternal life to all who trust in him.
...sin this refers to the work on calvary and his victory over sin and death.
...death Jesus has the keys to the twin monsters, death and Hades. He has the keys to unlock, the power to judge both for eternal life and eternal damnation.
John is now equipt for ministry, write!
vs 20 in the first interpretation Revelation gives itself to one of the difficult elements. As we mentioned earlier it explains the lampstands and the stars.
The real question now is: Do you know Him?
