The Revelation of Jesus Christ
by Dick York - November 2006

The Revelation is the last book of the Bible and, for many, the most fascinating. Readers go there to learn, they hope, all the details of the last days. It is much like going to a fortuneteller to learn what tomorrow will hold. But when they have read, they understand as little about the details as they did before. So they go to the experts and read what the commentators are saying. To their chagrin, the commentators fail to agree, so they are left with the choice of siding with a commentator of their choice or waiting for God to reveal the Revelation to them.

Are we saying that the Revelation cannot be understood? Not at all. We are saying that the Revelation is not for the purpose of satisfying our curiosity about the end time but rather to make end time events recognizable as they unfold. The vicious evil of the adversary is unmistakable; equally obvious is the ultimate triumph of the lamb. The big picture is clear; the details are more difficult to interpret. But I do not need to understand what all the details mean in order that the message accomplish its purpose in me. I can understand that no matter how severe the trials are that may come or how apparent the seeming defeat, I can rest with assurance in the ultimate victory of God’s purpose––in my life and in the world.

Paul prayed that the Ephesians would have a spirit of wisdom an d r evelation in the knowle dg e of God. Although it is good for us to know what other men think, to know God and His purposes only through the eyes of other men is not the same as hearing from the Lord. I do not want to know prematurely, to the point of seeking out other men’s wisdom, what God is planning to teach me in His time by revelation. T his is especially true when reputable, godly men, whom I, with goo d r eason, trust, disagree with each other on matters of interpretation. So if you came to this article with an expectation to gain some unique insight into the mysteries of the future, you may be disappointed. But the Revelation includes many unmistakable admonitions and exhortations to enhance our “today” and equip us more perfectly for the tomorrow that we will assuredly understand as it unfolds.

T he apostle John , victim of Nero’s infamous persecution and banished to the barren, isolated island of Patmos because of his teaching the word of God, was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day. Did his tormentors suppose that punishment would discourage John , curb his appetite for fellowship with the Lord and dissuade him from his purpose? Here is perhaps the first great lesson of this book. T he Lord has promised, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” How would one know that experientially if there were not a time when all other companionship and comfort were stripped away?

It was there in that desolate circumstance that John , a faithful witness, received his revelation of Jesus Chris t, who is the faithful witness. T his was more than a vision of the end times. It was a vision of the Lord Jesus Chris t. It is not in the elegance of the lighted halls of learning or in the sunshine of our most carefree moments that we understand and appreciate most the blessedness of fellowship with our risen Lord. It is in the barren wastelands of our experience––in the dark dungeons of despair––when all other joys have been stripped away that we see, starkly outlined against the dark backdrop of our circumstances, the glorious brilliance of the one who shares them with us.

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending," saith the Lord, "which is and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."

John could understand that. T he presence of the Lord Jesus transcends whatever else might be imposed upon us. T hough Nero was the greatest human authority on earth and also, in his time, the greatest opponent of the Gospel, he was as nothing before the one whom the Gospel proclaimed. He had arrested also the apostle Paul and tried to silence his voice by, according to history, cutting off his head. By this act, Nero had simply ushered him into the presence of the Lord. Paul 's ministry continued on, and does to this very day. Nero's life was a vapor that was here for a little time and then vanished away. And John , for a little time, was his prisoner.

But the quietness of John 's lonely exile was broken by a great voice, as a trumpet, saying, "I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last" and "What thou seest, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia ."

"And I turned," John writes, "to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks. And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters."

Whatever occupied John 's thoughts before was interrupted when he heard that trumpet-like voice that caused him to turn and see. Perhaps the bit of information contained in that tiny phrase, "being turned, I saw," has something to say to us who read it. It seems that when we hear God speak, it invariably causes us to turn––to think differently, or to change direction, perhaps even to repent of what we were––and focus upon Him. T hat was the beginning of John 's revelation.

What John saw was amazing: seven lampstands of pure gold with Jesus in the midst of them. T hese were the seven churches to which John was instructed to write. T he material from which they were fashioned informs us of their value as well as their nature. T hese represented the Church as God sees it. Gold speaks to us of God's glory. It was what covered the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies; it covered the boards of the T abernacle, the altar of incense and the table of Shewbread; and it formed the candlestick in the Holy place. T he Church, as God sees it, is the fullness of Him that filleth all in all. T he Church is the body of Chris t, and He is to be revealed in it. T hat is exactly what John saw in the midst of the churches, a revelation of Jesus.

If he had turned and had seen only seven golden candlesticks, no matter how impressive their obvious costliness, there would have been no revelation. This was a revelation of Jesus. T he churches were the context in which he was to be revealed.

But this was not the effeminate Jesus of Solman's painting or the cuddly Jesus of the Chris tmas crèche or the sin-tolerant Jesus of many a modern church; nor was it the bejeweled Jesus of a religious crucifix. T his was Jesus clothed with a garment of righteousness––Jesus who is girt about with truth and glory. T his was Jesus, the resurrected ju dg e of the whole earth whose judicial hair revealed him as the ancient of days, the supreme court ju dg e of the universe. His flaming eyes portray the fact that nothing is hid from His judicial scrutiny, and those brazen feet are they which will trample the grapes of his wrath in final ju dg ment.

So awesome was this revelation of Jesus as he is––in all of his majestic judicial glory––that John fell at his feet as a dead man. Who of us, seeing Jesus in such awesome magnificence could do otherwise? T his, perhaps, is the vision of him that is lacking among his people. We see him as a friend, and indeed we should. We also see him as our Savior because that’s who he is; we even see him as our Lord, although we may lack a clear understanding of what that really means. But if we see our friend, our Savior and our Lord, as John did in this glorious incident on Patmos , there is no doubt that self, which fills us an d r obs us so mercilessly of the riches of Chris t, would fal l b efore him as dead.

As John lay prostrate before this terrifyingly powerful figure who was so obviously endowed with judicial authority and the one whose last words to John and the other disciples had been, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth,” he felt the gentle pressure of Jesus’ hand and heard his voice say, “Fear not.” T hat right hand already held seven stars, which were the angels, or messengers, of the seven churches. What a remarkable hand that is! It holds his servants. It wasn’t too full to include his servant John . And it isn’t too full to include___________(insert your name). But we need a revelation of who Jesus really is.

T hat awesome Jesus that John saw as the ju dg e of the whole church, as well as of the whole earth, was also the comforter and encourager of his servants. “Fear not;” John heard him say, “I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth and was dead; and behold, I am alive forever more, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” Jesus is the last word in every situation. He has overcome the ultimate trial, the most fearsome ordeal and even the Devil himself. He has the keys to unlock every prison cell, even death itself.

Imagine John , captive of Nero and the solitary exile on a barren rock, hearing the ju dg e of the Roman emperor, creator of the barren rock, deliverer of captives an d r escuer of exiles saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last.” And then God gave him the assignment that would instruct the church for every generation to come. T here is no captor, no exile and no circumstance that can render us inaccessible to God or unusable to him. If we will hear Jesus’ voice and turn to see him as he is, he can be glorified in us yet.

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