The greatest act of love we know is from Jesus dying on the cross to save mankind from their sins. One of the reasons it is extraordinary is because Jesus died for his enemies, the ones who killed him. To all those who would believe in him, including his enemies, he gave a new life, a better life, a reconciled life with God; he gave a new purpose and he made them new creatures. That invitation to accept him is still open today for anyone who would believe. What’s more, Jesus continues to care for his sheep, those that belong to him which is his Church – his Bride, making sure she remains where she needs to be, that is being ready and waiting for him. As Christians, we are often used to Jesus being our saviour and we tend to reduce him at just that. In fact, when sermons are preached about Jesus, it is often about what he has done, how he has saved us from our sins and don’t get me wrong these are all true and needed but the focus is seldom on who Jesus is. It’s quite interesting because when you read the gospels, they tell you who Jesus is, not just what he has done. As I continue to read the book of Revelation, it does not shy away from depicting Jesus as who he is and shows us why seeing him in any other light is truly a dishonour to his Name, an insult to who he really is. I thank God for this book because it sheds a needed light on Jesus and as we read it and become acquainted with the multi-facetted Jesus, we cannot not bow down and worship him like the angels. My goal today is to continue to highlights the facets of Christ that were revealed in my reading this week for your knowledge and encouragement.
Last week, we saw that Jesus revealed himself in the churches of Ephesus, Smyrna and Thyatira respectively as: 1) “the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands”; 2) “the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.”; 3) “…him who has the sharp, double-edged sword”. Each of these revelations depicted Jesus in a position of authority greater than what we are used to. Indeed, every word Jesus spoke to the churches had a promise of reward attached to it for the overcomer and a promise of judgement attached to it for the one giving up or following his own ways. This alone, helps us see that Jesus is not just a saviour but he is also the one with power, he is the judge. This aspect of Jesus is not meditated upon much because we do not like being judged, plus who enjoys having to recognize they are wicked? Or having to receive what they deserve for their bad behaviour? Instead, we prefer to see Jesus as our redeemer. The idea that we could be judged is too egregious, plus, why be judged if Jesus has already taken our punishment on the cross? And why should I think about the fact that Jesus is a judge? For starters, the Bible is clear that he is one. He is the one coming to judge the Church and if you are in Christ, it includes you. I find it interesting that Jesus speaks to his Church first, he is not even addressing the world and that is because the world is already under judgement and waiting for their sentence. However, the Church must be wary of backsliding or doing things that are contrary to his teaching otherwise, their condemnation is going to be worse than others. So, yes, we the Church will be judged. In fact, wasn’t Jesus the one who said “that men will give an account on the day of judgement for every careless word they have spoken” (Matthew 12:36)? In light of this, we ought to be mindful of what we do, but more importantly we should remember that Jesus is not just our saviour, he is also the judge, the one who sits at the right hand of the Father, the one who is the head of the Church and as such, ensures that she is ready and blameless for the great marriage of the Lamb.
To the churches of Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea, Jesus reveals himself respectively as: 1) “him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars”; 2) “him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open”; 3) “the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” (Revelation 3:1, 7, 14). Jesus is once again helping us get out of our preconceived ideas about him so we don’t just keep him in a box because he is much more! Based on who he says he is, Jesus carries the Spirit of God in his fullness, no wonder he is holy and true. The beauty of it all is that he is the faithful and true witness which means his testimony is true, and what he tells the Father about you is true. This character of Jesus is well reflected in the words he says to each church, he tells them that he knows their deeds and he was right for all of them. Jesus has that deep insight and knowledge into things that are not available to mere finite men. He knows all things. Nothing escapes him. To each of these churches, he promised to the overcomers the following: 1) to be dressed in white, to walk with them; 2) to make them into a pillar in the temple of God, never leaving. Also, he will write on them the name of God and the name of the city of his God, and a new name; 3) the right to sit with him on his throne, just as he overcame and sat on his Father’s throne (Revelation 3:5, 12, 21). What strikes me the most is the fact that the promise of a reward is only to the one that has overcome, the one that has stood until the end. It’s quite logical but when you live in a society like mine where the idea of reward is not attached to competition, it dilutes the meaning and thwarts your understanding of it. It should not be surprising that the reward of the Lord is only for the overcomer but it sadly is to a number of us probably because we believe that in Christ we are all the same since we’re now one big family and God is good. However, that could not be farther from the truth. In fact, to the church of Philadelphia, Jesus says something that is quite scary, he says: “hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown” (Revelation 3:11). The race is not over yet, but this church already has her crown because she’s is still standing strong and remaining true to Jesus despite being weak. This church has not abandoned the race and Jesus tells her to keep going and not give up otherwise the crown she has will be taken by someone else who stands until the end. This is really what the Father is after, genuine steadfastness, remaining in Him until our very last breath.
In these multiples revelations of who Jesus is, what I am grateful for is that he reveals himself to us for our good. Just like with the churches he had words of rebuke and warning to them, he has the same for us so that we would change, so that we would not be complacent. Jesus’ goal is so that we would flourish. He is love and he loves us as he puts it to the church of Laodicea: “Those whom I love, I rebuke and discipline”. The rebuking and disciplining may not be fun but it is rewarding in the end. Like the psalmist said “Let a righteous man strike me – it is a kindness; let him rebuke me – it is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it.” (Psalm 141:5). This too, is how we should see the rebuke of the Lord which may come from his word, from brothers and sisters who point out our error to us or even from our family members. In each case, may we welcome it with the humility that Christ would desire. The book of Revelation has so much to say about Jesus and I pray the Lord opens our minds and hearts to know him as he should be known, in his fullness. May our thirst to know more about him continue to grow and as we grow in our knowledge of him, may it increase our humility and love for the Father. Amen.
A Word Aptly Spoken 