Revelation Chapter One

Revelation 1:1-2, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.”

I hear many people, including Alex Jones of Infowars, call it “Revelations” (plural). Folks, this is the last book of the Holy Bible called “Revelation” (singular). It is the Revelation of Jesus Christ to the Apostle John on the isle of Patmos. Jesus revealed these things by His angel unto the Apostle John.

Revelation 1:3, “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.”

There is a special blessing to those who read and hold true the things revealed in the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

Revelation 1:4-6, “John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”

These were seven literal churches that existed at the time of this writing in 96 AD. To my understanding this is Asia Minor, which is around the country of Turkey today. Satan is the god of this evil world (2nd Corinthians 4:4), the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2); but Jesus here is called the Prince of the kings (rulers) of the earth. God is always in charge! The Devil is on a short leash! This passage of Scripture teaches that every believer is a king and a priest unto God and His Father. Jesus here is called “God.” The Bible teaches that we (the saints) will reign with Jesus throughout the millennium. Revelation 20:6, “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” What a day that will be! I hope the Lord will give me a place to live in Honolulu, so I can play my Hawaiian steel guitar for people.

Revelation 1:7-8, “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 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.”

The preceding passage plainly refers to Jesus' Second Coming AFTER the 7-year Tribulation period. This is NOT the Rapture. We know this because only the saved will see Christ at the Rapture of the Church (1st Thessalonians 4:14-18). Every eye will see Christ at His Second Advent when He return to the earth. Jesus came 2,000 years ago TO His own. At the Rapture Jesus will return FOR His own. At His Second Coming Jesus will return WITH His own (tens of thousands of His saints). The next event of God's prophetic calendar is the Rapture.

Revelation 1:9, “I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.”

John was punished for preaching the Gospel, banished to the island of Patmos and left to fend for himself in the cold. The next time you suffer or endure tribulation, remember brother John and what he suffered on Patmos.

Revelation 1:10-11, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.”

Ah, here we see Sunday, the Lord's Day. There is no Sabbath Day today, all of the ceremonial laws were nailed to the cross (Colossians 2:14-16). Jesus is our Sabbath today, in Whom we rest for our salvation (Hebrews 4:9-11). There is theological debate whether at the Rapture saints will hear a trumpet sound, or the voice of an archangel as a trumpet. I won't argue the point, but I think we will hear both. The trumpet will precede the voice saying, “Come up hither!” In my humble thinking it doesn't matter, the important thing is to know that WE ARE GOING UP to be with the Lord!!! We should be looking for the UPPERTAKER, not the UNDERTAKER. 

Revelation 1:12-16, “And I turned 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. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.”

Jesus is the Son of Man, as well as the Son of God. He is the God-man! This is a vivid description of our blessed Savior, which I admittedly cannot comprehend. I honestly don't know what it means, but I think it is clear that Jesus is magnificent. It seems to me that the Lord is appearing in a symbolic way that emphasizes His holiness, perfection and goodness. As humans we think in finite terms; but Christ is God and can take on any form He so chooses. In His ressurected body Jesus walked through walls, defied gravity and was invincible to all harm or injury. Jesus allowed Himself to be crucified the first time He came for our sins, but when He returns it will be in power and might to overthrow the wicked and Satan.

The description of our Lord mentions His shining strength as the sun, His words sharper than any two-edged sword, and His burning eyes that pierce into the soul of every man, the angels being subject to His every command. We serve a mighty Savior!

Revelation 1:17-18, “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.”

I love our Lord's compassion and gentleness. He said “Fear not” to John to alleviate his fright. John fell at His feet as dead, motionless in fear of what He saw. Jesus existed before the universe was created, for He created it. Jesus has no beginning or end, because He is almighty God. In fact, in Revelation 1:8 Jesus is called “The Almighty.” Jesus along has the keys of Hell and death. Only those who trust in Christ will escape the wrath of God the Father in the Lake of Fire. Salvation is so free, easy and simple.

Revelation 1:19-20, “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter; The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.”

Here we are told the mystery, which means it is no longer a mystery. God always explains Himself if something is symbolic. Some people claim that the book of Revelation is all allegory (symbolic). This is not true! As we just saw for our selves, when something is symbolic God explains it. If the Bible does not teach that something is symbolic, then we should take it as literal unless we have a good reason Scripturally not to. The seven stars are in fact, angels. And the seven candlesticks are in fact, churches.

There are four common views of the Bible book of Revelation:

1. Historical view (the events of Revelation already happened)
2. Allegorical view (the book of Revelation is merely symbolic)
3. Idealist view (the book of Revelation represents ages of time)
4. Prophetic view (this is what I believe. The events of Revelation are futuristic)

The Bible is often described as being complicated and out of chronological order. However, if you think about it, and are familiar with the Bible somewhat, then it should be obvious how simple, profound and amazing God's Word truly is. The book of Genesis is astounding! I encourage you to lay down, close your eyes, and just listen to Alexander Scourby read the book of Genesis. It will take 3:29 hours.

The book of Revelation is all about the end of time. The subject of time is fascinating. Did you know that there was no time before Genesis 1:2? Time began with the creation of mankind. God made time as a way of sharing with His friends what He plans to do next. Bible prophecy is history written in advance. History is indeed HIS-STORY! I began this blog to teach all about the fascinating subject of Bible prophecy. Many people pay money to go to soothsayers, psychics, those who use Tarot cards, crystal balls and other forms of witchcraft. The reason people pay money to all the aforementioned evildoers is to KNOW THE FUTURE.

We all want to know what will happen in the future. But friend, God has already told us what the future holds in the Word of God. There is no way you can know what will happen in your life tomorrow here on earth, even if you plan to make something happen. There are no guarantees of tomorrow for anyone. But we CAN know our general future. I know that I am going to Heaven when I die. I know this based upon God's promise to SAVE THEM THAT BELIEVE (1st Corinthians 1:21b). I know based upon God's promise in Philippians 3:21 that I will receive a new glorified body, fashioned like unto the Lord's resurrected body.

When you study Bible prophecy, you are literally studying history written in advance! You are learning about the future in past tense. That is quite amazing when you think about it! The Bible has never been wrong! Everything that was prophesied in the Old Testament became a reality. When the prophet Isaiah prophesied Christ's virgin birth in 700 BC, it became a reality in Matthew 1:23. You can rest assure friend in the promises of God. The Bible contains 31% prophecy. The Muslim Koran contains zero prophecy! In studying prophecy we are learning all about Jesus and how the past, present and future relates to Him.