Church Under Fire // Will We Be Faithful To The End?

As you may be aware, we have been looking at the Psalms of accent and last Sunday we finished the 15th Psalm of the Psalms of accent. Where ae have been looking at the believer’s journey of what it means to be a Christian- a person who honours God in a sinful world that is passing away and headed for eternal destruction. We looked at God’s people longing and waiting for God’s shalom as they journeyed together from their different areas of aboard to the city of Jerusalem, to Mt. Zion and the temple- the presence of God where they expected to have an encounter with God and to experience his shalom or his wholeness and fulness and comes on those who have out their trust in him. We saw that the journey was not easy. That the travellers in Israel will be crying out to the Lord as they went through diverse challenges, trials and temptations. And yet they kept on journeying, ascending the hills and mountains of Israel to meet their God in Jerusalem. Every time I think about the Psalms of accent, I remember that song that we used to sing, “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back.” The travellers would say, “The world behind me, the crown before me.” And they would match towards Jerusalem where they would meet their God.

Now, today we come to the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation. If we saw the travelers in Psalms struggle with challenges in a sinful world, when we come to the book of Revelation, we see those challenges described in the form of trials, persecutions and tribulations as they come upon the Church of God. The book of Revelation still describes the believer’s journey. If God’s people met in Jerusalem as God’s covenant people, in the book of Revelation we meet them meeting in the presence of God as churches. We will see John the revelator addresses the seven churches that would have been worshipping the Lord but going through severe trials and persecutions. And in this book of Revelation the Apostle John will not only remind them of the challenges and trials that they must go through to arrive in Jerusalem but God’s perspective on their suffering and their troubles while they live in a sinful world.

I want to read Revelation 1 but we will be doing about nine episodes of these teachings from Revelation 1 up to Revelation 3 as we survey the messages that are written to the seven churches and how God expects these churches to live for him in very terrible times that they were encountering at that moment. So, let me read Revelation 1 and then we will hear how it introduces not just the book but the first 3 chapters that we are going to be going through for at least the next ten Sundays.

So, this is what Revelation 1 says,” The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw- that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near. John, to the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you 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. To him who loved 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 forever and ever! Amen. “Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: ‘Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.’ I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned, I saw seven golden lampstand and someone like a son of man, dressed in a rob reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades. Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.” And this is the word of the Lord, praise him.

It is a joy for us to begin this wonderful book of Revelation. And for many of us when we hear the book of Revelation we are like, “Wow, can anybody ever understand its contents?” It is a book that is highly poetic, very highly prophetic, very highly apocalyptic. That when you come to it you being to wonder, “Is this also part of the word of God? And how are we supposed to make sense of this book?” Now, as I think about the book of Revelation, I am reminded of an Old Testament prophet, the Prophet Habakkuk, a man who had a great concern and he tabled it before the Lord. What was his concern? That Israel had broken covenant with God and was sinning against God. And to Habakkuk’s disappointment, it seems like God was doing nothing about it. So, Habakkuk comes before the Lord and starts to challenge him, “You promised that you would punish sin and evil. Israel has sinned and you are quiet. God, what is really going on?” And God speaks to Habakkuk and he says, “Don’t worry. I will judge Israel as a nation for breaking my covenant. And I will use a more fierce and harsh nation to punish them severely.” Then Habakkuk again is concerned, ” God, I understand. Yes, Israel has sinned. But how can you use a more evil nation to punish Israel? Shouldn’t you be using one that’s holy, that is different from the sins of Israel?” And God says, “Habakkuk, you don’t understand. Watch and wait. You will see what I will do. Because after I have used an evil nation to punish Israel, I will also punish that nation.” Now Habakkuk is confused, “You’re going to punish Israel for sinning using a more sinful nation. And after that, the nation which has helped you to punish Israel, you will also punish it. God, what are you doing?” But as the conversation goes on, Habakkuk begins to understand that God’s plans and purposes are much higher and bigger than his small head. And what conclusion does he make? In Habakkuk 3:17 he says that, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my saviour. The sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, and he enables me to tread on the heights.”

Here is a man who has burst into praising and glorifying God even though he does not understand how God’s plans will unfold. But he has understood that God is up to something. That he has a plan and a purpose for the nations and for his people. And that no matter what, God is in charge, is in ultimate control and as long as he is on the throne, all things will work together for the good. Now, as we come to the book of Revelation, that seems to be the kind of response that the writer of the book expects us to have. That this book will introduce us to things that beyond our comprehension- things that may confuse us and overwhelm us. But no matter what happens, we must remember that we serve a sovereign God and when he is in charge things are already better. The book of Revelation is arranged somehow in a similar way with the book of Habakkuk. And it asks one major question; Where is God when things are falling apart all around us? In the face of suffering, especially the suffering of God’s people, where is God? And what is he doing about their condition? Does God have an answer for evil? Or have we as believers believed in vain? The book is written by John the Apostle as we see in the introduction to the seven churches that are located in the province of Asia minor at this time under the great Roman Empire. It is written at a time where Christian persecution has reached at its peak. Christians are suffering, they are being persecuted by Judaism because Jews look at Christianity as a counterfeit of the old Jewish customs and practices. Christians are being persecuted by the Roman regime and Empire because they see them as stubborn and arrogant simply because they refuse to bow down to emperor worship at this time. And right when everything seems hopeless and helpless, John receives a revelation on the Island of Patmos where he is shown certain things of what has been, what is and what will soon take place so that he can encourage God’s people who are feeling hopeless and need to find hope at this time.

This book provides the seven churches, the believers who are gathered here with a rationale for present suffering and a hope that is going to come in the return of Christ by describing the things that will soon be and explaining them to the believers. The book provides an answer to the problem of evil that began all the way from Genesis 3. Believers have been asking, “When will all this end?” In fact, when you come to Revelation 6, you see the believers asking and wondering, “When will God avenge the blood of the saints who have been suffering on account of their faith? Who have been isolated simply because of their belief and trust in Christ Jesus. So, this book provides an explanation of why suffering is there, of why the world is broken. But even more importantly it reminds God’s people that not all is lost. That God will show up, God will save his people, God will provide and protect his people and ultimately, God will deliver victory for all those who wait upon him.

It is a call to faithfulness in fearful times. It is a call to hope in hopeless times. It is a challenge for believers to live right especially in light of the glorious return of Christ. If there’s anything the book says, the book says that the risen reigning Christ will soon return but until then, believers must expect hard times because they live in a sinful world. The book therefore describes the events that must happen between the ascension of Jesus and his eminent return. The book says that hard times are coming, but they are not a sign that God has failed, rather they remind us of God’s faithfulness and commitment to preserve a people for himself in the midst of a falling, broken world. The book describes judgements that will come upon the unrepentant and those who oppose the Christian faith. But even more so, it tells them that there is room for repentance, there is hope for reconciliation with God as they wait for the return of the king Jesus Christ himself.

One of the commentators on the book of Revelation, a man William Hendrickson has written a book entitled, “More than conquerors. An interpretation for the book of Revelation.” On page seven, he summarizes what the book of Revelation is really about. Now, I want you to listen to his commentary and hopefully it will help you understand what the book of Revelation is really about. Hendrickson says that, “Believers are given an assurance in the book of Revelation that God sees their tears, that their prayers are influential in world affairs, and their death is precious in his sight. That their victory is sure, that their blood will be avenged. And Christ lives and reigns forevermore. That Christ governs the world in the interest of the Church and he’s returning to take his people to the marriage supper of the lamb.” The overarching theme of the book of Revelation Hendrickson says that there is victory in Christ and that Christ will win this victory over Satan and is establishment. The book of Revelation therefore, is God’s answer to the prayers and tears of the saints who are going through severe persecution and scattered about the cities of Asia minor where these churches are found. While the book seeks to explain their challenges in light of God’s eternal plans and purposes, the message of the book of Revelation goes beyond the current challenges and it addresses the consummation of all things in which Christ will ultimately grant victory over evil for all those who believe, praise the Lord. That indeed in the book of Revelation, where we see some of the worst suffering and most scaring persecution the Church has ever gone through, Christ pronounces his victory and triumph over the forces of evil and Satan and brings hope to these hopeless believers that not all is lost, that one day their tears will be wiped away. Joy unspeakable, joy eternal will be theirs in Christ Jesus. If there is anything that the book of Revelation tells us, is that it introduces the person and the para of Jesus, reminding us of who Jesus is and how he reigns sovereignly over the affairs of the world that no matter what Satan is doing, Christ will win the ultimate victory. Not only for himself, but for all those who have trusted in him. And that is why an understanding of the book of Revelation must begin with Jesus, you cannot begin anywhere else. Another commentator on the book of Revelation, David Guzik has said that, “From the outset, we are given the most important truth about the book of Revelation. That this book shows us the anti-Christ, it shows us God’s judgements, it shows us calamity on the earth, it shows us mystery of Babylon in detail.  But most of all, it shows us the revelation of Jesus Christ to us. If we catch everything else but miss Jesus in the book of Revelation, we have missed everything and the most important.”

And that is why as we begin this introduction to the book of Revelation, it is important that we ask ourselves, “Who is this man Jesus who brings this revelation that the churches and the believers need to know about?” Because you see, if that the book of Revelation has introduced itself as the revelation of Jesus, and you do not know Jesus or care to know about him, it means everything you read about the book or throughout the book is meaningless for you. The entry into the message of the book, the password to understanding the book is knowing who Jesus is. And that is why the book begins by telling us that this is the revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. And therefore, for us to enter into it and understand it, we must find out, what does the book say about Jesus? When we know Jesus then we will see why the book is important and worthy of our attention, why you and I should read it and understand it. When we know who Jesus is, we will get our motivation to obey the revelation that he has given us through this book. And that’s why it is important for us to ask ourselves, who is this man Jesus? Is he worth our following? And even more so, in the midst of persecution and suffering is he really worth all the suffering that we as believers must go through? Should we bank on him for the future ahead of us? What happens if we find that we have believed in a false Jesus? Supposing one day at the end of all things we realise that Jesus was actually false? That maybe he never even existed, that he was never savior and Lord of the universe. What will happen to all the believers who have believed in him and especially who have suffered because of him? You notice that these churches are going through a lot of persecution because of Jesus. If it were not for him, nobody would be hunting or chasing them. So, for them to endure their suffering, for that suffering to make sense and be worth it, they must not only believe and trust in Jesus, they must be sure that they know who he is. And hopefully he is who he says he is. Because if that is not true, then they have believed in vain, their suffering is for nothing and they have lost everything.

So, let’s go into the book and in the first three chapters let’s see how the book itself describes Jesus. Let’s see what the book says about Jesus and why this is important for us to know about him and to follow him in times of great hardship and persecution. Now, as we enter into the book, one of the first things we see is how John describes Jesus especially in Revelation 1. John describes Jesus in a number of ways and I want to point them out for us;

Number one, as the book opens John tells us that Jesus is the one who sends the angel to John to give him the revelation which God gave to Jesus. In other words, what John wants us to know, is that whatever it is that we are reading, is the revelation of Jesus. That Jesus is the origin of this revelation, that Jesus is the object of this revelation, that this revelation is from Jesus and is about Jesus. That when we read the book of Revelation, no matter what else it says or it describes, we must keep our eye on what it says about Jesus. Because by knowing what it says about Jesus, we will know the intention of the book and therefore find blessing in the message of the book. No wonder John tells us that, “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.” That is Revelation 1:3. The Apostle John says that because this message is an important one, and it is from Jesus and about Jesus, blessed are those who read it, blessed are those who hear it, blessed are those who take to heart what it says and what is written in it.

Number two, John describes Jesus in Revelation 1:5 by identifying him as the faithful witness, the first born from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth. That when we think about the book of Revelation, we should think about a message from Jesus and Jesus who is a faithful witness, the first born from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Now, the question is, what does John mean when he describes Jesus in this way? When John says Jesus is a nobody faithful witness, what is he talking about? Well, John is talking about Jesus in regard to his life on earth and ministry. That Jesus was a witness to the gospel message of the kingdom. As you remember in the gospels, Jesus lived the message of the kingdom, Jesus proclaimed the message of the kingdom and it was on account of this message that he suffered, that he died, that he rose from the dead. And in regards to proclaiming the message of the kingdom, John says that he was the faithful witness. But not only that, he describes him as the first born from the dead. And by this he is reminding us that the man who has sent a message to us is the risen one. The one who defeated death and the grave and rose again on the third day as the gospels tell us. Not only is he described as the resurrected one, but he is also described as one who is of more importance than anyone else. He is the first one to rise from the dead and never to die again. He is a model, and an example, and an illustration of what will happen to all those who will resurrect from the dead. And that’s why he is a special personality. That is why he is described as the first born and that first born is the one who sends the message to you and me. And because he is risen from the dead, he is also the ruler of the kings of the earth.

You see, many times when we think about Jesus, we think about a good great preacher, the man who did miracles and wonders, the man who died because of our sins and rose again for our righteousness. But often, we do not ask ourselves what happened after his ascension to heaven. The scriptures do not end at his ascension. In fact, his ascension is the beginning of his rulership over the nations of the earth. We are told that he ascended into heaven and now sits at the right hand of the father- Doing what? Number one, interceding for the saints. Number two, sitting on his throne of leadership where he rules over the nations of the earth. And where he will continue to rule after he has gathered all those who believe and trust in him and then all the nations of the world will be under his feet and under his leadership. John wants you to know that the book of Revelation is about this man. And when you open it, you have come face to face with a message from the faithful witness, the first born from the dead and the man who is the ruler of the kings of the earth.

Jesus’s Greatness In Relation To You And Me

Now, look at Revelation 1:6 and see how John continues to describe him. It keeps getting better and better. In Revelation 1:6 John describes Jesus and he says, “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.” You see brothers and sisters; it is one thing to know how Jesus is great but it is another thing to know how his greatness works for you and me. If the Bible had only described Jesus as a great man, as a faithful witness, as the risen one, as the one who ruled the nations and stopped there, it would have been good information but information that does not help you and me. What makes Christianity different from all other world religions is not so much that Jesus is good or Jesus is God but so much that Jesus has applied his Godhood and his goodness to you and me. Revelation 1:6 he says, it is he who loved us and freed us from our sins by his blood. He’s describing the events of the cross. That it was because of Calvary’s love that Jesus dies for you and me and freed us from our sins. That the reason you and I can call ourselves Christians today, men and women with a hope of eternal life, it is because Jesus loves us and his love was so great that it resulted to his death at Calvary. And because of his death, his blood has freed us from all our sins that we now stand reconciled to God, we stand fully and finally forgiven. We who were sinners now stand before God as saints and to that we should say, amen, and amen, and amen.

But remember, that he didn’t just forgive us our sins, this Jesus did not just love you and me but we are told that having cancelled the record of our sins in the past, he now organised our present and our future. How did he do that? That he has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God. The Jesus we are talking about is not a man who came and dealt with your past and then said, “Okay, I have cleared the record of your past. Now make sure you behave well for your future, see you when you arrive in heaven.” No, no, no, no! If Christianity was just about forgiving us of our past, it would still not be good enough. What makes Christianity good, and better, and unique is the fact that Jesus takes care of our past, our present, and our future. That he forgave us and freed us from our sins by his blood and then went further and made us into a kingdom, made us priests who serve our God day and night-who live in his presence and enjoy the fellowship of his power and of his glory every day and for the future ahead of us. And that my friends are what makes the gospel good news. That not only does he take away the judgement that we deserve, but he gives us the grace that we desire and we need. He takes away the bad things that we had and gives us the great and glorious things that he has prepared for us in heaven. He has loved us, he has freed us from our sins, he has made us to be a kingdom and priests that serve his God and father- Praise the Lord! This is what we are talking about, this is what makes the book of Revelation good news for you and me.

And then we go to Revelation 1:7 and what does he say? That this Jesus who loved you, this Jesus who freed you, this Jesus who has made you to be a kingdom and priests serving God in his presence, guess what? He is coming back. Wow! It does not get better than that. The climax of the good news of Christianity is not even that Jesus dies by the way, it’s not that Jesus rose from the dead as good as that is it’s not enough. The good news of the Christian faith is not that Jesus saved me, no, no, no, no. The good and great news of the Christian faith is that the one who died for me, the one who saved me, the one who keeps me today is returning someday to take me to heaven where for all eternity I will live away from sorrows, and worries, and problems, and pains of the world, never to be the same again.

Listen to how John describes his return, very interesting, “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and eye will see him, even those who pierced him. And all peoples on earth will mourn because of him.” And so shall it be! Amen. “Behold!”, John says. The word ‘Look’ here means to behold, or to pay attention, or to stop what you are doing and be careful, or and be attentive. And what John is saying basically, he’s saying, drop everything you are doing and listen to what I am about to say. This man Jesus, the one who gives this revelation to the churches, guess what? He’s coming back, on the clouds of heaven. And his coming back will not be private and personal, it will be public for all to see. The believers will see the Lord whom they believed. They will finally get to meet the man who died for their sins and who has made them priests unto God. But guess what? Wonder of wonders, even the people who pierced him, even those who crucified him, even those who continued to pierce him by their daily sinfulness will see him and to their shame they will regret why they never believed in him. They will wish they had known him and put their trust in him but by then it will be too late.

So, what you have here is a mixture of wonders. On the one hand, there is a rejoicing of believers who trusted Jesus as their personal saviour and Lord because he has come to take them to glory where there will be no sin, no shame, no more suffering. On the other hand, you have the crying, and the wailing, and the mourning of people who never believed and trusted in him. Now they realise that he was true all along, now they recognise that he was the saviour as the scriptures proclaimed but their recognition has come too late because they can no longer believe in him. They wish they could but it is too late. They wish they has known better but they can’t know any longer. So, you have a group of people or crowds that are mourning out of regret, guilt and shame, and then you have another crowd that are celebrating and jubilating that they believed in a saviour who has now come to take them to his home in heaven. A mixture of crying for joy and crying for sorrow depending on how you stand with Jesus. So, if there is anything the book of Revelation asks or challenges us to think about, it is the question, ‘On which side of Jesus are you?’ Are you one of those who have put their trust in him for the forgiveness of your sins and finally for your entrance into glory? Or, are you one of those who have doubted him, denied him and therefore are about to be destroyed eternally by his powerful presence as ruler and king of the universe? Which side are you?

Which Side Are You On?

The gospel of John keeps reminding us that there are only two sides. You are either for Jesus or against him. You are either in the light, or darkness, you are either in the right or in the wrong, you are either having eternal life or you are headed for eternal condemnation, there is no middle ground. John himself who also wrote this book of Revelation reminds us in John 14:6 where Jesus says, “I am the way, I am the truth, I am the life, no one comes to the father except through me.” That there is one way, and you are either in that way or you are not in that way. If you are in the way you will see the father, if you are not in the way too bad for you.

The same John the revelator reminds us why this is important to know Jesus for ourselves, to trust him for our eternity because guess what? He is coming back and every eye will see him, and all the people of the earth will mourn because of him. Will you mourn out of joy that your Lord and master has come? Or, will you mourn because you never believed in him as saviour and Lord? And now you wake up to realise that it is too late for you. The book of Revelation challenges you to consider, to be sure that you have believed right and you are not wasting your life and time because remember what the Scriptures say, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” Entrance to heaven will not be based on whether you were sincere on what you thought you believed to be true. Entrance in heaven will be based on whether you believed in the truth because only the truth shall set captives free. And the book of Revelation reminds us that.

Now, come to Revelation 1:8, and this time, it is not only the Apostle John describing Jesus, but now we meet Jesus describing himself. And how does he describe himself? He says that, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come …” Now, what is Jesus talking about here? What does he mean when he says, “I am the Alpha and Omega”? Now, Alpha and Omega are the Greek letter, are the letters of the Greek alphabet. Like the way in English we say, A, B, C, D up to the letter Z. When you come to the Greek language, Alpha is the first letter- what we call A in the English alphabet. And Omega is the last letter what we call letter Z in the English alphabet. So, when Jesus identifies himself as Alpha and Omega, he is basically saying, “I am the beginning and the end. I am the first, and I am the last. No matter where you look, before all things, I was and after all things, I will be.” And that is why he goes further and he says, “I was in the past, I am in the present, I will be in the future.” He says, ” I am the Alpha and Omega, who is- that is the present, who was- that is the past, who is to come- that is the future.” And as if that is not enough, he says, “… the Almighty.” Did you notice that he used the word ‘Almighty’ which is actually a designation of God? So, what is Jesus essentially saying? Jesus is saying, “I am God” You realise that the same ‘Alpha and Omega’ that John used to describe God in Revelation 1:3, is the same description that Jesus uses in Revelation 1:8 to describe himself. What is he saying? That, ” I and the father are one.” That, ” I and the father all share that aspect of Godhood and I am God just like the father is God, and just like the Holy Spirit is God. And that is why we Christians believe in the trinity. That God who is one person, rather, God who is one being he has revealed himself in three persons- the person of the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit.

And we see all these descriptions by the way in Revelation 1. John talks about the father who is Alpha and Omega, he talks about the seven spirits that comprise of the Holy Spirit, and then he talks about Jesus the son who also describes himself as Alpha and Omega-who is, who was and is to come and who further describes himself as the ‘Almighty’. In other words, he’s describing the trinity, the triune God. That the God of the Christian faith is one being, revealed in the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit. And Jesus is saying, “If you want to understand me well, if you want to appreciate the message I am giving you in the book of Revelation, you must come to me, approach me, and understand me as God himself. I am Alpha and Omega, who is, who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” And then he continues later in Revelation 1:17 & 18, the same Jesus describes himself and he says, “Do not be afraid John. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive forever more! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” Now, what is going on here? Remember Jesus already described himself as Alpha and Omega, now some of you might me thinking, “No, Alpha and Omega means God so Jesus cannot be saying that he’s also God.” If you ever had any doubts like those, Revelation 1:17 & 18 dispels all those doubts for you. because Jesus not only describes himself as the first and the last, but he also says, “I am the one who was dead and now I am alive.” Now, if you say that this verse only talks about God the father, then are you saying that God also died? No, who do we know that died and rose again from the dead? It’s Jesus. And in the same sentence, he says that, ” I am the First and the Last.” Which was applying to God in Revelation 1:3 & 8. But then he says, “I am the Living One, I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever.” in other words, I am Jesus. Because he is the one who was dead and is alive forever more. And guess what? He does not only introduce himself as the living one, the one who rose from the dead, but he says, “I have conquered death and the grave forever.” Listen to what he says, “I hold the keys of death and hades.” That having overcome death, death no longer has any hold on him. In other words, he will never die again. Therefore, he is the living one. But even more importantly, he now controls death. That he decides who dies and who lives. And there is no privilege on behalf of Satan to kill anyone.

Many times, when someone dies, you see people binding, you see people praying against the spirit of death, and they are thinking Satan has killed someone. Satan does not have the power to kill anyone. When Jesus rose from the dead and triumphed over death and the grave, he disarmed the power of death for everyone who believes in him. And he says, “I have power over death. In fact, I hold the keys of death and Hades.” Now, the word ‘Hades’ in the Bible sometimes has been used to refer to hell and many people are thinking he’s talking about hell. But what is being talked about here is not actually hell. Hades was a Hebrew word that meant a place that you would go to immediately after death. And that is where Jesus went after he had died on Calvary’s cross. So, when the Bible uses the word ‘Hades’, it’s not talking about hell, it’s talking about a place for the dead, where the dead go immediately after death before God’s judgement, and they go either to heaven or to hell. And Jesus says that he holds the keys over death and over hades- that place where the dead go. And as believers what he seems to be saying is that we no longer have to be under the fear of death because Jesus has conquered it and disarmed it. That we who have trusted in Christ as our saviour and Lord now live in the power of the hope of the resurrection. That death is not the end but is the beginning of life eternal. And as believers we face death in the hope of eternal life. We look at death as a victory over the limitations of this sinful world, over the limitations of the body. And therefore, when we stand in the face of death we still sing and say, ‘To God be the glory great things he has done.’

Why? Because we have trusted in the one who was dead but now is alive forever more. Who promises the same life eternal to all of us who believe in his presence and the presence of the father. And it is this Jesus that has revealed this revelation to the Apostle John, it is this Jesus that we must look to as we open up the book of Revelation. It is this Jesus who will be telling us what has been, what is and what will come. It is this Jesus that we’ll be studying in the first three chapters of Revelation as we continue to see this revelation and especially to hear what God is revealing to us today. May the Lord bless you so much as you continue to think through this message and to pray about it and through it as you find encouragement in who Jesus is and what he has done for you. And even more importantly how Jesus will continue to hold your hand as you go through the trials and challenges of such a sinful world.

So, this is part one of our introduction to the book of Revelation. Next Sunday we will continue with part two of the same introduction before we can start to look at the message to the seven churches. And then we will continue to see, not only who Jesus is but what he says to the believers in these churches and what that message means for you and me as we continue to trust the Lord. Remembering that one day he will come on the clouds of heaven, every eye will see him including those who pierced him. And all the people on earth will mourn because of him. And as the Scripture says, so shall it be amen and amen. May the Lord bless you; may the Lord watch over you as you continue to study and to fellowship with the brothers and the saints. And my prayer is, that not only will you be challenged by the message of Revelation, but you will be changed never to be the same again.

Let’s pray together; We thank you precious God for giving us the grace to honour you and to worship together as a congregation of believers in your presence. We at New City we are privileged to know you as our saviour and Lord. And our desire is to continue to exalt Christ and to extend his kingdom. We pray that through our worship and through our outreach, that we will continue to honour you in any way possible. As we go into the new week, we ask for your grace and favour upon each one of us, your protection and provision during the week. That you will give us opportunities to share Jesus with so many people. But even more importantly, to remind them that Jesus is returning and to remind them of their need to be prepared that they may not be put to shame and they may be among those who mourn upon his return. Will you bless us together as we continue to worship you and to fellowship with one another. We pray all these things through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen, amen. May the Lord bless you brothers and sisters. I will ask elder Bob to say something before we can have the words of the benediction.