During a time of intense persecution of the Early Church, the Apostle John wrote a letter to be circulated to churches in seven cities in Asia Minor. This letter is the final book in our Bibles – the book of Revelation.
John begins his letter by saying that he was caught up in a vision where he heard a loud voice telling him to write to the seven churches (verses 10-11). When he turned around to see who was speaking to him, he saw Jesus Christ as he had never seen him before.
John saw the ascended Jesus in all His power, dominion and glory. He describes Him as having eyes like a blazing fire, glowing skin, a double-edged sword in His mouth, and a face that shone like the full force of the sun (verses 13-16). And John could only fall at His feet!
The revelation of Jesus Christ
The book of Revelation is all about Jesus. In the previous post we saw how vitally important it is for us to begin where John begins – with a revelation of Jesus Christ (Revelation 1:1, 13-16). If Jesus isn’t first and foremost, then we have missed the whole point of this wonderful book of Revelation.
But notice where Jesus is standing in chapter 1. He is standing in the middle of the seven churches that John is to write to.
And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man… and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
Revelation 1:12-13, 20b (NIV)
There is a revelation of Jesus Christ that He wants to bring to His church – even today. And the first thing He wants us to realise is that He is standing in the midst of us as Lord and King over absolutely everything.
He is very much alive and in complete command, no matter what is going on in the world. He is victorious, and therefore we are victorious. This is a very present reality that we dare not miss. That was Jesus’ message to the persecuted believers of John’s day, and that is Jesus’ message to us in our mixed-up world today.
Jesus’ message to His church
Just as the King Jesus had some things He wanted to say as He stood in the midst of the seven churches of John’s day, He also has some things He wants to say to us today. If I could sum up Jesus’ message to the church of today, it might be something like this:
I know your works. I see the hardships you have been through. I understand the difficulties that you are currently facing. But right now you need to pay careful attention to My words. It’s time to put right those things I’ve been speaking to you about. You cannot ignore them any longer. It’s time to step into that new place. For you have to be ready for what’s ahead. There’s a harvest to come. There are lives to be transformed. What’s coming is going to be glorious, but it will also be challenging. Just know that you will find everything you need right now, and for what’s ahead, in Me.
So what is God saying to you? Make the time to follow it through. We have such exciting times ahead!
