Revelation chapter 1:1-8
At the very onset of this study, we must note the first statement in verse one;
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ”
This statement alone is reason enough to not fear this Book or spend time in it. Jesus is the One we always want to seek in the Bible and right here it tells us that He will be revealed to us as we read the contents of this great Book of victory!
Notice in verse one as well, the Apostle John is going to be shown “things which must shortly come to pass.” One area of confusion to those that read the Bible is it is read with a short calendar and time clock thinking. Meaning, they try to see things as happening chronologically or in short time frames rather than understanding years can pass before the next event actually happens. When the Bible is read, some read it as though things were happening daily, weekly or yearly, not realizing how much time has passed between events.
When the Bible says ‘shortly’ the time frame can amount to centuries of time. In 2 Peter 3:8 we see Peter is quoting the Psalmist when He says “one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day.” As we proceed forward in examining the Book of Revelation we must keep this in mind and that it applies to times past as well as times future.
In verse three of chapter one, we read that a Blessing has been pronounced “on all that read, hear and keep what is written.” By faith as we study this book, start believing that the Blessing is going to manifest good things in our lives. One blessing for sure is that our understanding will be enlightened as we study this book together.
Verse four begins a letter to the Seven Churches in Asia from Jesus whom John refers to as; “Which is and which was, and which is to come.”
The Seven Spirits mentioned here refer to the Churches as well as the assigned Angel of that Church. Since John just finished greeting the seven churches, would it be difficult to consider that each church has an Angel representing that church before God’s Throne? We can see that the Early Church in the Book of Acts had many encounters with Angels. From the first day when Jesus ascended to Heaven, two Angels appeared to the disciples assuring them that ‘Jesus would return the same way He left.’ In Hebrews 1:14 it is stated that Angels are ministering “spirits” unto the heirs of salvation, which is the Church.
We will discuss the Seven Spirits in more detail in Chapters 4 and 5.
Let’s not pass over the confirmation of our salvation in verse five which should cause praise from our lips. I stated this is a book of victory, so remember the eternity that is laid out before us!
Then verse six proclaims something glorious about us; “And hath made us Kings and Priests unto GOD!” Some translations say this is a Kingdom of Priests. However, either way we have a kingly and priestly ministry to fulfill in this earth. Jesus spent much time preaching the Kingdom and that it has come to us and is in us. He instructed us to ‘pray that God’s will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.’ When we stop and examine how things are in Heaven, we realize that there is much work to do on Earth.
When we get to verse seven we see John is proclaiming something that must be understood. This is not the Rapture; rather he is describing an event that takes place at the end of the Tribulation period. The Rapture takes place when Jesus comes as a “thief in the night!” The Rapture is a true revelation of the Apostle Paul and again many argue the point, however that is another study and I subscribe to the Rapture because I have studied Paul’s revelation of it and believe him over anyone else.
Evidently he gets excited after the proclamation of verse seven and when he gets to verse eight he quotes exuberantly what Jesus says to him a few verses later…
