We continue in our study of The Revelation. In this installment, I lead the class through the Greeting, John's call and commission from the Lord, some thoughts on the various names of Jesus, and the message from the Lord to the church at Ephesus.
As always, I will present the options of interpretation when there are options, as well as my opinion on which option seems best. However, whereas there are certain teachings from The Revelation that are absolutely undeniably clear, there are some that we need not nor should not become too dogmatic.
The point of the book - "Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him." (1:7)
I trust the Lord will have his way in your heart as you study his word. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll address them at our next class. You will be able to hear my response to your question on our next recording. (I hope this is helpful to those not in our area who are following this class.) You can write your questions to: drkirkmccormick@gmail.com
God bless you as you study and respond to His Word! To God be the Glory...Come, Lord Jesus!
Kirk McCormick
** Before we start, should you miss a class you can listen
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If you would, also, like to register for my blog, you can do so at the
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address: kirkmccormick.blogspot.com
** Also…some abbreviations to help you decode the notes.
“c.f.” = cross reference…you can
find this same teaching in another part of the Bible
“v.” = the single verse of the
chapter are we discussing
“vs.” = the multiple verses of a
chapter are we discussing
“e.g.” = from the Latin, exempli gratia, which means “for the
sake of example” or “for example”
“i.e.” = from the Latin, id est, which means “that is”
“OT” = Old Testament
“NT” = New Testament
Revelation 1:4-20
Note: There are churches in other parts of the Region (e.g.:
Colossae (Colossians 1:2), Hierapolis (Colossians 4:13), Troas (2 Corinthians
2:12; Acts 20:5), Miletus (Acts 20:17)), so
why these Seven?
Possible Answers:
1.
The Seven were the churches located on the main
trade routes of the area. The others were more remote.
2.
John uses the number “7” throughout the book as
a demonstration of the perfection of this vision. In fact, “Seven” occurs fifty-four times.
There are actually seven sets of seven. They are the:
·
seven candlesticks (1:12),
·
seven stars (1:16),
·
seven lamps (4:5),
·
seven seals (5:1),
·
seven horns and seven eyes (5:6),
·
seven thunders (10:3),
·
seven angels, plagues and bowls (15:6–8)
3.
Other commentators (the Futurists and Idealists)
postulate that these 7 represent the church in throughout the ages, present and
future. If this were the case, the
meaning would be:
4.
Some commentators (the Preterists) believe that
John addresses these “7” because they represent the condition of the whole,
universal church in John’s day.
5.
Others believe that these 7 were chosen because
of their distinctive and extreme practice of emperor worship.
6.
More than likely, however, John likely writes to
these seven because he has special authority over them as their Bishop. He knew
and loved them best, so he could be the most severe and honest with them. And they are listed in the order that one
would travel (i.e.: circuit ministry) if one used the Roman road system. Ephesus would be first if one was coming from
Rome by ship. One would then travel clockwise to Smyrna, making Laodicea the
last to be visited on the circuit. John,
of course, would follow that same circuit, so this makes practical sense,
too. This is the Historicist approach. (See the maps below)
Revelation 1:4-6 – The Greeting
·
“Grace and Peace” is the standard greeting
o
“Grace” = the mercy of God’s undeserved favor
o
“Peace” = Hebrew: shalom… a greeting of
well-being indicative of a life restored/recreated by God through Holy Spirit’s
work in a person’s heart/spirit
·
“…from him who
is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from
Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the
dead,
and the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
The Revelation comes from the
Father, through Holy Spirit, and is testified to/given credence by Jesus
Christ.
o
“Is”
(i.e.: the Object of Creation), “Was”
(i.e.: Source of past blessings), “Is to
come” (i.e.: Focus of future promises)… see: Exodus 3:14; Isaiah 41:4
o
“seven
spirits”… this is unusual language, even for John (who never uses the name
“Holy Spirit” in this book)
§
Some believe this to be Holy Spirit. Their
reasoning:
· However,
a Jewish tradition was to think of Holy Spirit’s work as a seven-fold ministry
in God’s people. See Isaiah 11:2,3
- “The Spirit
of God will rest upon him, a spirit of [1] wisdom and [2] understanding, a
spirit of [3] counsel and [4] might, a spirit of [5] knowledge and [6]
godliness; the Spirit will fill him with [7] the fear of the Lord”
· So
it is Holy Spirit that is referred to here, making this Revelation a gift to
the churches from the Trinitarian God: Eternal Creator, Spirit, and Jesus.
· And
why would a created being (i.e.: angel(s)) be included with the Father and Son
as John establishes the authority/source behind the Revelation? It makes more
sense to include Holy Spirit, no matter how strangely Holy Spirit is named.
§ Others
believe the “seven spirits” are in reference to the angels over each of the
seven churches. Their reasoning:
· Nowhere
in his writings does John use “Spirits” for the Holy Spirit, but angels are
always created beings in the service of God.
· Each of the 7 churches has an “angel”
(i.e.: messenger) assigned to it. This seems to be an individual
angel/messenger, not just that church’s portion of Holy Spirit working in it.
· So the “seven spirits” represent the
fraternity of angels assigned by God to communicate with the churches in that
region. Some might call them the 7 Ministering Angels (i.e.: Uriel,
Raphael, Raguel, Michael, Gabriel, Saiquael and Jeremiel – the seven “Archangels”
mentioned in the Apocrypha, of which only Gabriel and Michael are mentioned in
the NT) around the
Throne who go in and out of God’ presence according to his command. (This is common language used in the
Apocryphal books of the OT: Tobit,
Enoch, etc.)
Kirk’s Opinion: In the final
conclusion, I believe this is likely a reference to Holy Spirit…yet it is not
something that matters as God is clearly the source of the Revelation John is
recording.
o
Jesus is the
§
“faithful
witness” = the teacher is explicates the Word of God truthfully
§
“firstborn
from the dead” = the prototype of all who will be saved
§
“ruler”
= under whom all authority rests…he has absolute dominion over all creation
·
Then John, in the final part of the Greeting, reminds
the reader of the Focus of this book:
“To him who loves us and has freed us from
our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his
God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.” (1:5, 6)
Jesus Will Return (1:7-8)
** “Coming in the Clouds”…referring to the imminent return
of Jesus in fulfillment of Daniel 7:13, Zechariah
12:10, Matthew 24:30, and John 19:37, to mention a few.
** Jesus calls himself (v. 8):
1.
The “Alpha and Omega” – the first and last
letters of the Greek alphabet
o
Here Jesus reminds the reader he is Creator
(Alpha) and Judge (Omega). In other words, he is sovereign over all.
2.
“Who is, and who was, and who is to come, the
Almighty” –
o
Similar to verse 4, Jesus now applies the name of
the Eternal God to himself. Let there be
no mistake, Jesus declares himself the Almighty whose power and authority
cannot be denied.
Point: In short, these two verses are Jesus way of
saying, “All that you are about to witness and experience are designed to
fulfill prophecy and the promises I’ve made.”
A Little Background to the Coming
Revelation (1:9-20)
The Setting to the Vision (1:9-11)
** John was in exile on Patmos (for the location, see the
previous map) because of his commitment to Jesus Christ.
1.
He’s a “brother and companion”
2.
He’s suffering (Greek: thlipsis = pressure…being “squeezed”)
for the sake of the kingdom, willing to endure patiently (Greek: hupomone = intentional courage in face
of adversity) for Jesus
Point: The way to the kingdom is through suffering and
endurance. i.e.: there is no easy way to live for Christ in a world hostile to
the Gospel.
** John is “in the Spirit” (v. 10) = either worshipping or
in a transcendent state when God interrupts (“heard behind me a loud voice like
a trumpet”) when God gave him his marching orders:
“Write on a scroll what you see and send it
to the seven churches…” (v. 11)
The Vision Begins (1:12-16)
** John turns and sees:
·
7 Golden Lampstands – c.f.: Zechariah 4:2, symbols
of the 7 Churches (see v. 20) of Revelation 2 and 3
·
Someone, like a “son of man”...
o
…dressed
in a robe reaching down to his feet with a gold sash around his chest –
part of the priestly garment described
in Exodus 28:4
o
…White
hair on his head – symbol of respect indicating wisdom
o
…Eyes
blazing fire – penetrating scrutiny of those on earth, and fierce judgment
of what he sees (c.f.: Daniel 10:6)
o
…Feet
like bronze glowing in a furnace – glowing fire is symbolic of the Glory of
God (c.f.: Ezekiel 1:13, 27; 8:2) that
is unstoppably marching toward victory
o
…Voice
like the sound of rushing water – the irresistible voice of God commanding
all things that happen (e.g.: God
“spoke” and Creation happened in Genesis 1 and 2)
o
…Right
hand held 7 Starts – right hand is hand of power…7 stars are angels at his
command (v. 20) who are assigned to the 7 Churches (Chapters 2 and 3)
o
…out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword – “double-edged” is judgment that cannot
be thwarted, stalled, rejected.
NOTE: This is a unique double-edged sword (rhomphaia vs. machaira in
Hebrews 4:12 – “the Word of God is sharper than any double-edged sword”) ,
unlike ever seen in the Bible
o
…face
like the sun shining brilliantly – the shekinah
glory of God, same as Moses saw and reflected
Point: So here we have the Risen Messiah who is coming
back as Warrior Priest, not as Suffering Servant.
Jesus Commissions John to Write The Revelation
(1:17-20)
** Remember…John has seen the Resurrected Jesus…so when he
sees him again, he:
1.
…falls to his knees to worship him, to show
respect and reverence (v. 17)
2.
…but he is also afraid – we know because of
Jesus’ first words to John, “Do not be afraid.”
Question: Why
would John be afraid of Jesus?
Answer: Because
Jesus’ appearance had changed from when John last saw Jesus. Again, Jesus goes
from Suffering Servant to Warrior Priest.
** More about Jesus (vs. 17-18)
Note: All of these names for Jesus
in this chapter will be used throughout the Book, in particular with the
addresses to the 7 Churches. ALSO, John
takes titles about God from the OT and applies them to the Risen Christ.
·
Jesus is:
o
The “First and the Last”
o
The “Living One; I was dead and behold I am
alive”
o
the Holder of “the Keys of death and Hades”
** Then the simple commission (v. 20) – “Whatever you see,
write it down!”
Revelation 2-3: Jesus and the Seven
Churches
** John is writing to actual churches in the “Asia”. In the
Bible, “Asia” does not refer to the continent, but to the Roman province
encompassed in modern-day Asia Minor (or, more specifically, Turkey).
** You can tell so much about Jesus’ intent in speaking to
each church by the previously-mentioned title he invokes at the beginning of
his address to each church.
Ephesus – Revelation 2:1-7
Who is Speaking? …the
one who “holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven
golden lampstands” (i.e.: the true leader and foundation of the church: Jesus)
Positives: They
are hardworking and persevere for the faith. They do not tolerate false
prophets.
Negatives: They
have “forsaken their first love.” Could
mean they have fallen into idolatry or are acting on their own authority. Or,
more than likely, they were just going through the motion of appearing faithful
without a solid connection with Jesus by the establishment of a spiritual
“higher class” – the result of their strong work.
Admonition: Repent and return to Jesus. Stand firm against the Nicolaitans = the
establishment of a spiritual hierarchy via an extra priesthood “spiritual
giants”.
Key Teaching Points:
** When you are feeling apart from
God:
1.
Remember - the past closeness to God.
2.
Repent - turn away from what distracted you and
turn back to Jesus
3.
Repeat – the things that once brought you close
to God
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