Revelation for Beginners

A SWORD FROM HIS MOUTH ( Ch. 1:16b)

When we think of a sword in a mouth, perhaps we would typically think of a circus sword-swallower. But in that instance a sword is going into a mouth, whereas in this text a sword is protruding out of His mouth. It seems too bizarre to be literal, so what does it symbolize here?

An obvious observation is that a sword is used as a weapon, both offensive and defensive. But what would that imply here? War between nations? Personal combat? Spiritual combat? And how would that fit in with our themes of justice and mercy combined in each symbol of Christ in Revelation 1? And how does this harmonize with the description elsewhere in Scripture of Jesus as ”Prince of Peace”?

Perhaps the sword as an executioner of justice is easiest to find. In Revelation 19:15 we see the same portrayal of Christ with the sword from His mouth as He rides a white horse at the head of the heavenly armies to execute justice on the earth at the end of time, and a terrible slaughter results. But where is mercy in this picture: Consider the fact that Jesus is also coming to rescue His people, so His use of the “sword” on the wicked is an act of mercy to the saved. When the wicked attempt to physically exterminate God’s people, Jesus intervenes to physically rescue them.

Yet in a sense this is but the final conclusion of an ongoing spiritual battle through the centuries. Ephesians 6:11-18 reveals a serious spiritual warfare between good and evil, with spiritual weapons being used, including the “sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” Hebrews 4:12 talks about the Word being sharper than a two-edged sword, capable of discerning even the thoughts and intents of the heart. On the one hand it exposes the true condition of the heart, which is in actuality an act of mercy to lead us to repentance and salvation. At the same time it is also our weapon of choice against spiritual foes. Compare how Jesus used the Word as a weapon to defeat the devil in His confrontation with him in the wilderness (see Matthew 4 and Luke 4).

But how does this fit the picture of Jesus as “Prince of Peace”? He once said “I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Matthew 10:34. Jesus came as the Truth, to demonstrate what the truth was all about, but truth is not popular amid a culture of deception. Consequently it aroused antagonism and persecution. In the end of the salvation story, there will be eternal peace, but getting there involves pain and suffering, and yes, battles, spiritual ones which sometimes have physical consequences. Often we feel this battle raging within ourselves, but Jesus stands ready to give us victory even now.

Ultimately Jesus executes justice and recovers the earth from the grasp of Satan and his follower, while God’s children inherit a re-created world of peace without sin and sinners, where they will spend eternity with their merciful Savior. Meanwhile, while still in this world of sin and suffering, they can have spiritual peace as they rest in the love and care of their Lord and Savior, trusting Him fully.

A FACE LIKE THE SUN (Rev. 1:16c)

He was on a journey with deadly intent. He and his associates had been arresting Christians so they could be tried and put to death. Now, s they were traveling in the heat of the midday sun, suddenly and without warning a light brighter than the noonday sun shone on them. They fell to the ground in fear, not knowing what was going on. Then the leader, Saul, heard a voice calling his name. When he asked, “Who are you, Lord?” the answer came, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.” (Acts 25:10-15)
Saul wasn’t the first to experience the blinding brightness of Jesus’ countenance in His divinity. Daniel, in one of his visions, described a being similar to John’s vision in Revelation, whose face was like the appearance of lightning (Daniel 10:6).

Now John, too, has a vision of Jesus and sees His face “like the sun shining in its strength.” So, is this just the natural appearance of Jesus in His divinity? Or does it have some special meaning beyond that? In this contextual description of Jesus we have taken the position that each feature, while it may or may not be a “normal” characteristic, it does carry symbolic value also. Further, we have noted that each symbol is two-sided—it can represent the justice of Jesus as well as His love and mercy. So how does that play out here?

In the incident regarding the apostle Paul on his way to Damascus to arrest Christians, we can see the justice aspect at work. It was like an act of judgment, at least insofar as it arrested him in his murderous plotting and blinded him. In Revelation 6:16, we see the wicked trying to hide from the face of Christ when He returns to execute judgment on the earth. At the same time, we can also notice mercy functioning. The encounter on the road to Damascus was really also an act of mercy for Saul as it resulted in turning his life around. Jesus loved Saul, the strict Pharisee, and Saul became Paul, a staunch follower of Jesus and a champion of the gospel. And in Revelation 6:16, even though some are fleeing from the presence of God, others are looking up and saying, “Lo this is our God and He will save us.” (Isaiah 25:9) So His mercy is extended to His followers at the same time as the wicked are being destroyed by the brightness of His coming (2 Thessalonians 2:8). Our reaction depends on our relationship with Him. It reminds me of Jesus cleansing the temple as recorded in Matthew 21:12, 14. While the money changers were being driven out of the temple, other people were coming in to be healed.
So while the sun can be scorching, and burning, and blinding, and destructive, it can also be warming, and comforting, and illuminating, and immunizing. Jesus can be our best Friend and Advocate or a feared Judge.

I can remember a chorus from childhood that went “Heavenly sunshine, heavenly sunshine, flooding my soul with glory divine, Heavenly sunshine, heavenly sunshine, Hallelujah, Jesus is mine.” The sunshine of His love can surely be transforming if we get to truly know Him, accept Him as our Savior and Lord, and cooperate with His plans and purposes.

FIRST AND LAST (Revelation 1:17)

When the glories of God appear in all their splendor, they are apparently so overwhelming that fear is the instinctive response. Remember the angels’ appearance to the shepherds in Bethlehem (Luke 2:9). The shepherds were “greatly afraid” and the first words of an angel were “Fear not.” An angel said the same thing to Daniel (Daniel 10:12) after a glorious heavenly vision. Here in Revelation, after John’s vision of a glorified Christ, he became almost like a dead man. But then Jesus touched him (Jesus was not afraid to touch sinners or even lepers) with His right hand (symbolic of favor and power) and encouraged him not to be afraid.

That seems to be a typical response of Jesus to human fear. Once when the disciples were in the middle of a terrible storm on the Sea of Galilee (Mt. 14:25, 26) Jesus came walking on the water. They thought He was a ghost and were fearful, but His quick words of comfort were “It is I–be not afraid.” Another stormy event on the same lake (Mk. 4:40) found Jesus asleep in the boat with them. Upon awakening and seeing their fear, He calmed the storm and remarked, “Why were you so afraid–do you still not have faith?” Good question still today for those of us who wrestle with fears and panic attacks. A wonderful promise is in Isaiah 41:10: “Fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. I will strengthen thee, yea I will help thee, yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” There is that victorious right hand again.

There would be some fearful events about to be portrayed in some of John’s visions, so this reminder at the beginning was a good one to hear. Besides, it is best to learn the lessons of trust now, while troubles are relatively minor, before encountering the more severe ones in the future.

But how does the next phrase–“I am the first and the last”–correlate with “don’t be afraid”?
It is stated as though it is the reason John shouldn’t be afraid. We saw that same phrase in verse 11 of this same chapter, so its repetition must mean it is significant. It is a phrase found several times in the Old Testament as well–Isaiah 41:4; 44:6; 48:12, 13; 43:1, 11-13 for example. The concept suggests one who can finish what he begins, one who is in control and not thwarted by obstacles. In other words, Christ is able to accomplish His ultimate purposes in spite of all obstacles, so don’t worry, no need to fear the outcome or your personal destiny. Besides, we already know the final results by reading the last part of the book of Revelation. In Hebrews 12:2 it calls Him the author and finisher of our faith and in Philippians 1:6 it says He who began a good work in you will complete it–i.e. He is competent to do so as we cooperate with Him. So don’t be discouraged if you slip up–get beck up and walk with Jesus again. He is able to extricate us from embarrassment and difficulty and ultimately to present us faultless before the throne of God with exceeding joy (Jude 24). Amazing grace! And there is more. He is able to keep what we have committed to Him (2 Timothy 1:12). He is able to aid those who are being tempted (Hebrews 2:18). And He is able to do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think (Ephesians 3:20).

Back in the 60s I was attending school in Germany. One afternoon after church students from our school went into the city to do street ministry with musical instruments, preaching, and giving out tracts. Right above the plaza where we were working was a large billboard advertising the James Bond film “Goldfinger.” The gold-gilded lady was quite a contrast to our activities below. But I still have one of the tracts they passed out then–“Das Letzte Wort Spricht Gott”–God speaks the last word, or in more idiomatic English “God has the last word” or “God has the final say-so.”

Ultimately He who is first and last will indeed have the last word–evil will one day be exterminated (see Hebrews 2:14). Even death doesn’t have the final say-so, for at the final judgment, it, too, will be eliminated (Revelation 20:14). Justice will have been administered, the love of God will have triumphed, and all things will be made new (Revelation 21:5). Even losing our lives here is not the end, for there is a spectacular resurrection at the coming of Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17). What a wonderful future we have to look forward to as we stay close to Jesus during these tumultuous times.

KEYS OF DEATH, Rev. 1:18

Have you ever wondered what happens when this life is over? There are many ideas floating around. Do we go to heaven, hell, purgatory, or limbo? Or is some form of reincarnation our destiny? Or maybe this life is all there is–only eternal nothingness ahead. And what about near death experiences (NDE)–do they prove anything? There is also the paranormal, seances, etc. This verse introduces a topic that can be quite controversial and is deserving of more extended treatment in a category of its own on this blogsite/website. But for now, perhaps we can pick up some hints from this verse and a few others related to it. What we really want to know is what the Bible actually teaches, not some news tabloid or merely someone’s opinion or even personal experience, for all must be judged by Scripture.

First of all, this verse is really about Jesus, which certainly fits in with the portrait of Him we’ve been studying in this chapter. He now speaks for Himself about a special power He has. First He says He is alive, which seems pretty evident, but then He reminds us that at one time He was dead. Thus He refers to His resurrection, an event so important that the apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:17-19: “And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.” His unique power is highlighted in John 10:17, 18 when He states: “My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay id down of Myself. I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.” Because of this unique power to rise from the dead He can make the statement in Revelation 1:18: “I have the keys of Hades and of death.” What does He really mean by that statement, what does hades mean and what does that mean for us personally?

Some Bible translations render the word “hades” as “domain of the dead”, and others simply call it “the grave,” in other words, He has the “keys” to death and the grave. This seems to fit well with Jesus’ own comments in John 5:28, 29 in looking forward to that day we refer to as “resurrection day.” “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth–those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation.” Because Jesus never sinned and was also divine, death could not hold Him in the grave and He now has authority to also release us from the grasp of death to be with Him forever. That’s good news for us. That’s the bottom line of that phrase. You can stop here. If you want to probe further, keep reading.

An interesting thought crossed my mind the other day. If everyone went directly to heaven, hell, purgatory, or wherever, who would be left in the grave? And what good would a key to death do if no one were dead–if they all were already in heaven, hell, etc. experiencing their reward? It would be like having a key to prison with no prisoners inside–what would be the point? As you can see, there is much more to explore–perhaps more another time.

But back to the key. Today we have a phrase “giving someone a key to the city.” It’s often used regarding a celebrity or dignitary visiting a city, perhaps for the first time, and the mayor presents him with a “key to the city,” usually a large symbolic one which is unable to literally unlock anything. But it indicates the individual is welcome everywhere and has access to all the city has to offer. So here, the key is a symbolic one–there is no literal jail or geographical location it is referring to. Rather is signifies Jesus’ access to “the realm of the dead”==the grave. It represents His power to raise the dead to life again.

Ecclesiastes 9:10 reminds us of our initial destiny as it states: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work of device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.” But isn’t there a text somewhere that says something goes back to God? Yes, there is in Ecclesiastes 12:7: “Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.” The dust part we seem to understand pretty well–the body disintegrates into its original components. But what is that spirit God gave to man? We go back to Genesis 2:7 to discover the original formula God used to create mankind in the very beginning. Here it is: “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (the Hebrew word for “breath” is the same word translated “spirit”); and man became a living being (“soul” in the old King James Version).” So after using the dust of the ground to form man, what He gave Him was the breath of life, which enabled him to become a living person. Now if I breathed into a dead person, for example, nothing would happen. But God is the source of life, so His breath does make a difference. So that spirit that goes back to God who gave it is the essence of life. When that returns to God, the person ceases to exist temporarily. There was no conscious being in heaven before his creation and there is no conscious being left after death, at least temporarily. It is like going to sleep. Remember the verse in 1 Corinthians 15:18 which compares death to a sleep. When you are asleep you have no awareness of what is going on. When you wake up you have no idea how long you have slept–whether 10 minutes or 10 hours–until you look at your watch or see the sun coming up. It seems as though it was only an instant of time. Likewise, whether you have been dead a minute or a thousand years, it will seem as though it was just the blink of an eye till you wake up and see Jesus coming for you! There will be no awareness of the passing of time.

There are many other scriptures which use the word “sleep” to refer to the death experience.
This idea of death as a sleep is used by Jesus Himself as recorded in John 11 in the story of Lazarus. He was apparently a close friend of Jesus, so when Lazarus became deathly sick, his sisters sent a message to Jesus about it, expecting Him to come pronto. He didn’t, but waited awhile, with a specific purpose in mind. But in verse 11 He finally told His disciples, “‘Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.’ Then His disciples said, ‘Lord, if he sleeps he will get well. ‘ However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead.'”

But another important question comes up: ok, if I go to the grave when I die and am then later resurrected, am I the same person? What happens to my identity, personality, etc., if I have no conscious existence in this interim period? The way I like to think of it is that as part of this “spirit” that returns to God, our life force, included in that package if you please, is my personal identity, my personality, etc., everything that makes up who I am. So, then, my identity is preserved in the mind of God–what safer place could there be?! God has an incredible infinite mind that is never overloaded. And He is like an artist who envisions a picture in His mind and then transfers it onto canvas. In the beginning God did that when He created earth. He simply spoke and what He saw in His mind became reality. So on the resurrection day all God has to do is speak the word and the dead come to life again, with their personal identity package restored. We will know each other in the resurrection–but we will have glorified bodies with no defects. Won’t that be great?! And since God is not dependent on pre-existing matter to create, it won’t matter whether our death came as a result of being burned at the stake or being eaten by wild animals. Our identity is always safe with God.

One thing to keep in mind through all this, is that God loved us very intensely to make all this possible. Jesus risked His own eternal life to come live and die in our behalf and take the punishment for our sins so we could live with Him forever. It was as if He couldn’t bear to live in eternity without us. Yes, He definitely has the keys to death and the grave so we can be assured death does not have the last word–God does. How much we owe in praise to our loving Creator!

STARS AND LAMPSTANDS, Rev. 1:19, 20

In these verses John is commanded to write down what he has been shown pertaining to the past, present, and future. This lends credence to the historicist pattern of interpretation which starts at the time of the writer and continues into the future until Jesus comes–a continuous unfolding of prophecy. In verse 20 Christ talks of two more major symbols–stars and lampstands. These figure prominently in the next two chapters. Fortunately, He helps us out by interpreting these two symbols for us.

The stars He says stand for the “angels” of the seven churches (represented by lampstands). In the original Greek language, the word translated as “angels” means literally “messengers.” In other words, this can refer to regular human beings or to heavenly beings. Sometimes the word is indeed used in the Bible refer to a normal human being, though most of the time it appears to refer to angelic beings. But because of the dual meaning, commentators are divided as to its application here. Some believe there is an angel representing each church; others believe it is referring to the human church leader of each congregation. I lean toward the latter, as the messages are directed to very fallible human beings with great needs.

In verse 11 it was discussed that there are three ways of applying these messages to the seven church congregations, all of them equally valid and meaningful. The first is that they apply to the very real congregations in these particular cities in John’s day. They would have recognized themselves and found the counsel to be very helpful. Understanding more about the cities and churches of that day can help us interpret these along those lines. The second is that these unique congregations came to symbolize the Christian church through the following centuries as their particular characteristics seemed to correlate with the state of the church during those eras, as history seems to bear out. The third application is a spiritual one. There are spiritual lessons all of us can learn today from what has gone before. And in a sense, though the last day church is labeled Laodicean, yet in another sense it is also to some degree a composite of all that have gone before. For example, in the church of today you can find those who have lost their first love, those who have apostatized, those who are being persecuted, those who are lukewarm, etc.

Before we go into these seven church letters, there is a paradigm–a pattern or template– which each one follows that will help us in understanding the messages. Here is how I look at this outline:

1. Christ–The first thing we see is Christ presented to the church with a selection of characteristics from the vision in chapter one. The particular characteristics chosen are those which will meet the special needs of this congregation.

2. Commendation–With one exception, Christ looks for something to praise them for before He points out problems.

3. Censure–Now Christ begins to point out problems in the church that are serious hindrances to its growth. There are a couple exceptions to this one.

4. Counsel–Christ doesn’t leave the church hanging by merely pointing out problems. He has a solution for those problems and counsels them what should be done to remedy the problem.

5. Covenant–Finally Christ makes a covenant with the church, a promise He gives them if they submit to Him and become overcomers.

This is the template we will apply to each of these church messages to see what lessons we can learn for our own spiritual growth and walk with Jesus. We can see that Christ is intensely interested in His church on earth and does all He can to uphold and assist His people who still have to live in a messed up world while awaiting His return.