Redemption: Accomplished And Applied

The title for this blog comes from a very helpful book written by the late Westminster Theological Seminary professor, John Murray. What the theologian did in those pages was to outline not only how God achieved redemption in Christ, but also how he continually brings about the presence and effects of that redemption to his elect.

The title is also a very accurate label for the second half of the Revelation 4-5 throne room vision (5:1-14). In these fourteen verses we are made aware of the second and third ways we are encouraged by God’s sweet sovereignty in this current age.

2 & 3. God Sovereignly Accomplished Salvation Through The Lamb (Jesus Christ), And He is Sovereignty Applying That Salvation Work To The World.

Both of these encouragements to the church are intertwined throughout this part of the vision John received. Let’s discover the ways this is so.

a. God The Father Is Envisioned On His Throne In The Heavenly Throne Room And As Sovereignly In Control Of The Accomplishment And Application Of Salvation And Judgment. 1

Here we read: “Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals.” This vision has roots in the Old Testament. In Isaiah 29:11 the vision of what is happening in Judah and the subsequent judgment God will bring upon them is “like the words of a book that is sealed.” Similarly, in Daniel 12:4, 9, Daniel’s visions of the end-times events in the far future are sealed up in a book. It also is not insignificant that in one of the most central OT passages that stands behind the visions of Revelation (Daniel 7) that God is envisioned sitting in judgment on his throne “and the books were opened.”

What we glean from these Old Testament passages is that what is in view here in the book or scroll is God’s plan for the achievement and outworking of both salvation and judgment in history. We have seen in chapter four that God is sovereign over all and that when he plans something it is as certain as if it had already happened. Yet, now we see this applied particularly to the salvation of the church and to judgment upon those who oppose God and treat the church unjustly, even persecuting them. This last point will be seen more clearly as we read in chapter six of the unsealing of the scroll. These truths are powerful for churches being persecuted. After all, God will preserve, protect, and save them in the ultimate sense. They also are powerful for churches on the brink of compromise. Such congregations will face the judgment of God unless they repent.

The fact that the scroll is sealed means its God-decreed events have not come to fruition yet.

b. The Only One Worthy To Unseal The Book And Bring About All That Is Ordained In It: The Hero. 2-5

In a very dramatic fashion that emphasizes there is only one who can accomplish and secure the outworking of what God has decreed for this age in relation to salvation and judgment, we first read: “And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, 4 and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it.” The way this is worded, with the question asked by a mighty angel, the silence in all heaven and earth, and then John’s passionate response, all are designed to lead the reader to see there is no hope for salvation and judgement in all the world, except as found in only one.  That one is revealed in verse five.

In 5:5 we read: “And one of the elders said to me, ‘Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.’” There is no need for John to be distraught and hopeless. The fourfold reason is found in the hero introduced here.

To begin, he is referred to as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah.” This comes from Genesis 49:8-10, where Jacob was blessing his sons toward the end of his life and where we read in his blessing of Judah: “Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons shall bow down before you. 9Judah is a lion's cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him? 10

The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” Not only is Judah referred to here as a lion, but it is affirmed that he, somehow through his descendants, will have an everlasting and world-wide kingdom that includes the peoples or nations submitting to him. Especially in light of later Old Testament prophecies that speak of a descendant of David who will have an everlasting kingdom (Jer. 33:14-22; Ezek. 34:23), this has traditionally been seen as a prophecy about the coming Messiah (God’s anointed king who will bring his kingdom and saving blessings to his people). The one seen is this Messiah (the Christ).

Second, he is referred to as “the root of David.” This is taken from Isaiah 11, where the future Messiah, the one who will bring God’s worldwide kingdom and saving blessings, is referred to as “the root of Jesse” (11:10 [Jesse was David’s father]). This is a reiteration that the one seen is the Messiah, the Christ, who brings the kingdom of God. In other words, he is able to accomplish and work out, to apply what God has decreed about salvation and judgment.

Third, it is said of this one that he “has conquered.” In other words, there is a way in which he has been victorious, he has defeated something and/or someone. It is also likely that in context what is intended is not only that the accomplishment and application of salvation and redemption are tied to his conquering or overcoming, but that God’s people are able to conquer or overcome because this one has (see the same verb used in promises to overcoming saints: 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21). In fact, Rev. 3:21 draws this direct connection between the conquering of Jesus and that of his followers: “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”

Fourth and finally, we uncover the outcome, purpose, or the result of his having conquered: “so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” It is through this one John envisions, that what God has decreed and that which will enable the church to conquer will come to fruition.

Yet, the reader has been held in suspense. Who is this hero?  Verse six leaves no doubt as to the identity.

c. The Identity Of The Hero And What He Did Behind The Accomplishment And Outworking Of God’s Ordained Salvation And Judgment. 6

Here is what John saw, as recorded in verse six: “And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.”

It is clear from elsewhere in Revelation that this is none other than Jesus Christ. We know this, to begin with, because in 1:5, 18 it has already been affirmed that he died a substitutionary atoning death and was raised from the dead to free his people, save them, and give them life, and later in Revelation this death is attributed to the Lamb (7:14; 12:11). Additionally, John recorded Jesus as affirming he had conquered and so his people can (3:21).  But more than this, it is said of the “Lamb” elsewhere in Revelation: That he is to be praised as is God on the throne, thus strongly implying he is God and so the second person of the one true and living God (Rev. 5:12-13); he exercises judging wrath, which is a role of God (6:16); he is viewed as being married to the bride, the people of God (19:7) which, in light of its Old Testament background (e.g. Is. 62:1-5) also means he is divine; the twelve apostles belonged to him, which clearly equates him with Jesus Christ (21:14); and he is the light of glory of the new Jerusalem, along with God the Father on the throne (21:22, 23, 27; 22:1); and finally, according to precise language, he is equal with the Father, but also a distinct person (22:3). All of this, beyond doubt, identifies him as Jesus Christ.

Beyond the Lamb’s identity, however, we see great significance in how he is described here in verse six. He is “standing, as though it had been slain:” Here, he is viewed as fulfilling the prophesy of Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (sp. 53:4-6) as the slain lamb, the one to die in the place of God’s people. That he has been slain in the past and his death brings continual results (the sense of the wording) speaks of the substitutionary atoning death of Jesus on the cross. Yet, the fact he is standing implies he has been raised and is no longer dead (see Rev. 1:18). We see here the enemy he has conquered that saints might conquer—sin and death. Later in Revelation it will be made clear he has also conquered the ultimate enemy, Satan (12:7-12, esp. v. 11).

It is also said of him that he is standing “with seven horns.” Horns in Scripture are symbolic of power, just as they tend to emphasize the power of an animal or beast, as we see in Rev. 13:1, 11; 17:3 (cf. also Dan. 7:7ff.).  Here is the slain, risen, conquering, divine Lamb, Son of Man, and Lion of Judah, who has great power. He has wielded this power and continues to wield it in behalf of his people, to save them!  This is a glorious assurance for the church in the face of hostility.

He also is standing “with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.” We have already seen “the seven spirits of God” referred to in 1:4 and in 4:5—a reference to the Holy Spirit who empowers the people of God for our mission. Here, however, what is emphasized in the “seven eyes” most likely is the awareness on the part of the Spirit (and so of the Father). However, the Spirit here is directly associated with the Lamb. The reason most likely is that through the work of Jesus Christ in behalf of the church, the Spirit is present in the church applying the person, power, presence, and work of Christ. Additionally, with this comes infallible awareness of what the church needs for protection, preservation, and to be propelled away from sin and idolatry to faithfulness before God (note in the seven messages to the churches in chapters 2-3 the emphasis on Jesus knowing where they are and what they need).

d. The Heroic Lamb Begins To Unfold The Divinely-Decreed Salvation And Judgment In God’s Book. 7-8

Here John records what he saw as follows: “And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. 8 And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.”

Elsewhere in Revelation (see chapter 12) the start of salvation and judgment is tied to the death and resurrection of Jesus. The following context here makes clear that is the point of victory, the point of accomplishment.

Something of interest is that the twenty-four elders have golden bowls full of incense that symbolize the prayers of the saints. The significance of this, as seen in Rev. 8:1-5 (as part of the seventh seal that gives way to the seven trumpets), is that God works to accomplish redemption and to carry out its entailments (salvation of his people and judgment on opposition) in response to the prayers of his followers. So, even though God has determined what he will accomplish, he has also decreed the means to the end, which includes prayer. This shows the significance of prayer!

e. In Response To The Heroic Lamb’s Actions, Two Hymns Of Praise Are Offered, Which Clarify Even Further What The Lamb Has Done To Accomplish And Apply Salvation. 9-14

Regarding the first hymn (9-10) we read: “And they sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, 10and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.’”

Here we find out what Jesus Christ, the heroic Lamb, has done to accomplish and apply salvation.

Next, we read of a second hymn (11-14): “Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice, ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!’ 13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!’ 14 And the four living creatures said, ‘Amen!’ and the elders fell down and worshiped.”

Here we discover all the heavenly beings John sees around the throne worshiping the slain and risen Lamb. Because he is the Savior and the one who demonstrates all who ignore him deserve judgment, he is worthy of all that men can give to him (power, wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing). In other words, all that God has gifted us with, we should give to the Savior to magnify him and to be used in the continual application and outworking of redemption.

The idea is similar to what we see in Romans 12:1 (NLT): “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”

The implication for readers of Revelation 5 is that we too should give all we have in worship and service to Christ.

Joyfully Worshiping And Serving The Lamb With You,

Tom

The Sweetness Of The Absolute Sovereignty Of God, Part 2

In my previous post I introduced the sweetness of the reality of God’s absolute sovereignty and the first four truths that emerge from Revelation 4 and help unpack this great subject. In this post I will set forth the remaining five truths.

We start in verse 3.

e. In Spite Of All The Horrible Things That Happen To The Church In This Age, Christians Are To Remember Their Sovereign God Is Also Merciful And They Can Trust Him. 3

Here we read: “And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.”

The fact that a rainbow is seen around the throne makes us go back to the throne room vision of Ezekiel 1:28, where God’s glory is displayed around his throne in this manner: “Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.” Yet it also takes us even much further back in history to the time God destroyed the world (all but one family saved through an ark) and then afterward covenanted with mankind he would be merciful to them and never do this again (Gen. 9:8-17). So, this rainbow seems to reveal that the God who is sovereign over this world is also merciful and has ordered history in a manner to show this.

What is also significant is that the Apostle Paul affirms that the reason God has ordained sin’s presence in the world, along with its curse and brokenness was that God might display his mercy (Rom. 9:15, 22-23). This throne room vision reminds us that God is not just sovereign, he is merciful, and part of the reason we must suffer in this age is that this mercy might be highlighted that much more.

Something else displayed in this part of the vision, in the presence of the precious stones around the throne, is that God’s glory is seen in his care for his people, his bride (see the presence of these stones in the new Jerusalem, i.e. God’s bride [Rev. 21:11, 18-20]), which has as its background the jewels in the breastplate of the high priest in the Old Covenant—jewels that represented the reality he went into the Holy of Holies representing the people of God (see Exodus 28:15-21).

Though the fact that God is sovereign over and in and through our suffering may be a hard truth, we must also remember he is a good, loving, merciful heavenly Father who has our best interest ultimately in mind (Mt. 7:7-11; Rom. 8:28).

f. Even Though We Live In The Midst Of This Fallen And Broken World, With All Its Suffering And Hardships, Our Identity And Citizenship Are Already In Heaven. 4

Our sovereign, merciful God has worked in our behalf to bring us to the future joys and rewards of his full kingdom. Part of the way we are assured of this is found in verse 4, where we learn that identity and citizenship are already in heaven. Here is what we read: “Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads.”

We know from Rev. 21:12-14 that these 24 probably represent the Old Covenant patriarchs and also the New Covenant apostles—in other words the people of God of all times. We also know from 5:8; 7:19-17, they are distinguished from the redeemed humans and so are most likely angels. Yet, they are angels who represent or symbolize the people of God. They serve before God in the temple and worship him. The point seems to be that this is what the church is called to do and be, i.e. to be the worshiping ministers of God in this world—as they realize their identity and citizenship finds its origin in the new creation of heaven.

The point is that we define our circumstances and success in life by that which is bigger, rather than merely by what we experience.

g. Even Though We Live In The Midst Of This Fallen And Broken World, With All Its Suffering And Hardships, Our Ultimate Purpose Is To Serve And Glorify God By The Power Of God’s Spirit. 5

When John writes, “From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder,” this alludes to Exodus 19:16 and the same phenomena that Israel experienced when they were at Mt. Sinai, when God met with Moses to give him the Law, to covenant with Israel, and to call and prepare them for their mission after they had been delivered out of Egypt. God was reminding Israel of his holiness and the danger of ignoring him, taking him lightly, or rebelling against him. Several times in Revelation we also see these same phenomena, in contexts where God is bringing judgment (8:5; 11:19; 16:18).  The point seems to be that we are to serve and honor God, not to take him lightly.

John goes on to write that he also saw the following: “and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God” (see also 1:4), which is a clear reference to the vision Zechariah had in Zechariah 4:1-7, wherein he saw a lampstand with seven lamps on it—all connected to a continual flow of olive oil, and this represented the work of the Spirit to empower Zerubbabel, the governor, for his mission of rebuilding the temple. The main lesson was found in Zech. 4:6: “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” The point seems to be that God’s Spirit is present and necessary to empower his people for faithful and enduring service. God, then, not only allows difficulties, but he also, in his mercy, provides power to face them and to persevere.

h. Even Though We Live In The Midst Of This Fallen And Broken World, With All Its Suffering And Hardships, We Have The Assurance Our God Will Save Us And Make All Things Right. 6-11

John writes in these verses the following:

…and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal.

And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: 7 the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. 8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”

9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power,

for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

In these verses we have allusions back to the Red Sea, which was a barrier to salvation and which God overcome to save Israel (6), and to visions of Ezekiel 1 and Isaiah 6 and their throne room visions (6-8). In both of these books God is showing he must bring judgment upon those who have ignored him, will ultimately save those who come to him in faith and repentance, and all of this to his glory. Elsewhere in Revelation (15:2) the sea of glass (an elevated reminder of the Red Sea) is associated with the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt as a type of ultimate salvation.

What we apparently see in these verses is that the sovereign God will surely save those who trust in him (including those who are persecuted) and bring judgment on those who don’t  trust in him (including those who are persecutors). This is one more indication we can trust God in this age, no matter what is happening.

i. God’s Sovereign Plan Is As Certain As if It Had Already Happened. 11

The final point made in this chapter about the sweetness of God’s sovereignty as applied to his people in this age is found in verse 11: “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

In context, this statement of praise is not merely about God’s original creation, but it is also about his ongoing governance of all things (spoken of here as creating things). The last part of the verse seems to affirm that whatever God ordains will happen first exists and then it is created or comes into existence. I take this to mean that whatever God has decreed to take place, even though it hasn’t been realized yet, is just as certain as if it had already happened.

This is not only an indication of the certainty of God’s plans and his promises to his people, it is one more indication that his sovereignty is absolute.

Conclusion

So, to wrap up Revelation 4, God truly is absolutely sovereign and this should be a sweet truth to encourage, comfort, and motivate the church on mission, especially if Christians see God’s sovereignty accompanied by all these other truths about who he is and how he works.  

Yet, there are two more truths that emerge from this vision, both of which are located in the second half of the vision in chapter 5. We will begin looking at these next week.

Joyfully Resting On Our Sovereign God With You,

Tom

The Sweetness Of The Absolute Sovereignty Of God, Part 1

Imagine that your children or grandchildren are being harassed at school because of their profession of faith in Jesus Christ, as well as the fact they have been trying to tell their friends about him. How would you advise them? How would you seek to encourage them? What would you say?

Some Christians would tell them: “Back off a little. Surely God would not want you to experience such difficult things. He would want you to be happy.” Others may not say that, but would simply think and communicate, “Well, that is just the way things are in this broken world when Christians try to witness.” And, behind this thought may be the thinking that though God may have known ahead of time this would happen, he does not have the ability (or maybe doesn’t have the desire) to influence human free choices so that he can do anything about it or can bring good results from it. In other words, “If you keep witnessing, you are on your own.”

I say these are responses many would give because they reflect the way that many Christians view both God and living on mission. And, if these are the views we have of God—coupled with the thinking that our salvation is a free gift that means it doesn’t really matter whether or not we live differently or on mission—it is easy to see why the vast majority of Christians (some say well over 95%) never even attempt to share the gospel with others.

This brings up an additional question: How would the Bible respond to this situation and seek to encourage us, our children, or our grandchildren?  We don’t have to guess at the answer, since John addresses this very issue in the book of Revelation.

In Revelation we have already discovered that at the very core of who we are and what we are to do, the church is to live on mission, as disciplemaking witnesses to Christ (1:6, 20; 2:4 [see also 5:10; 11:1-14; 12:11, et. al.]). Yet, we have also learned that in this broken, cursed, sinful world, this typically leads to persecution—through which we are to persevere (1:9; 2:7, 9-10, 11, 17, 19, 25-26; 3:3, 5, 8-10, 12, 21). It is true that we do not want to be unnecessarily caustic or pushy. But, the reality is that if we are never receiving pushback at least to some degree for our gospel ministry, then we either are not living missionally, or we are sharing a false gospel (see Mt. 5:10-12; John 15:18-27; 2 Tim. 3:12)!

One of the main purposes of Revelation is to give comfort and encouragement to persecuted Christians in this age and also to spur the church on to faithful, enduring witness in spite of such tribulation. And the center, the very hub, of this message, is found in chapters 4-5.  These chapters, which are still addressed to the seven churches in Asia of chapters 2-3, the seven churches who represent the worldwide church of all time, form the theological foundation of the book.

And, what they teach by way of a vision John saw is that the church finds strength and comfort to persevere, as well as motivation to live on mission, from the sweet reality that God is absolutely sovereign and, as such, through God the Son, is carrying out his plan of redemption for the world.

1. The Reality of God’s Sweet Sovereignty For The Church In This Current Age. 4:1-11

The unpacking of this reality that encourages, comforts, and motivates Christians includes nine truths, four of which we will explore in this post and the remaining five in the next.

a. The Vision Does Not Present What Is Next Chronologically In History, But What Is Next In John’s Sequence Of Visions He Received. 1

The clause, “after this I looked,” or ones similar to it, merely introduce the next vision John receives, not necessarily what takes place next chronologically in history (see 7:1, 9; 15:5; 18:1; 19:1). This is important for us to understand since some interpreters of Revelation have suggested these verses introduce what will happen in the future, after Christ has returned, and the  church is raptured before a time of tribulation. Then, what happens in chapters 6-20 is perhaps a chronological depiction of what will happen at that time in the future. Because of how this clause is used elsewhere, as well as many other bits of evidence (some of which are here in chapter four and we will address soon), we should not expect these chapters merely to unfold events that happen in the future after Christ’s return.

b. The Vision Depicts Heaven To Be Like A Temple With A Throne Room In It. 1-2

We know this because John writes: “and behold, a door standing open in heaven! …At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.” This makes clear that what John sees is a throne room. Later statements in the vision clarify that what is also depicted is a temple in which priests serve and from which God carries out his salvation of mankind (see 4:4, 10; 5:6, 8, 9-10, 13-14). So, what this vision is symbolizing (remember 1:1, that God is symbolizing what is taking place!) is that the salvation of mankind is emanating from this temple throne room. The manner in which this salvation activity or history is carried out or applied will be shown in chapters 6-20. But here is where it starts.

c. The Vision Communicates That God Is Absolutely Sovereign Over History In This Age—In A Manner That Humans Make Free And Responsible Choices (In The Biblical Sense Of These Words). 1-2

 This truth emerges from the following clauses: “…with God sitting on the throne…and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.” The word “throne” appears seventeen times in Revelation 4-5, and twenty-one times in the rest of Revelation (chapters 6-22). From this, we know that whatever it speaks of, it is emphasized throughout the book, but especially in chapters 4-5. As it is fleshed out in the structure of the rest of the book and how all the subsequent visions flow out of Rev. 4-5, it shows God is King over all the world and its events. As we will be reminded of shortly, the main focus is on the events of this age in which we currently live—between the first and second comings of Christ.

The way that theologians typically refer to this truth that God is king is to say that he is sovereign or that he possesses the attribute of sovereignty. The kind of sovereignty displayed is absolute, meaning that it is in no way conditional upon or limited by human choices (or even his prior knowledge of those choices). In other words, it is a kind of sovereignty by which God initiates and determines all that takes place. We know this is the kind of sovereignty presented here for the following reasons:

(1) As we will unpack over the next couple of weeks, the structure of the book of Revelation suggests that God, in his sovereignty, determines all that takes place.

(2) The way Revelation 4:11 is worded, as will be seen when we come to the end of chapter 4, supports the assertion God’s sovereignty is absolute.

(3) The scroll of chapter 5 that symbolizes the events of history suggests a meticulous (down to the very smallest details and choices) governance of those events by God.

(4) The language of Rev. 5:9-10 strongly suggests that the same group of people Jesus ransomed, he also will transform into a kingdom and priest to God—which strongly implies he is able to influence all kinds of people (from all over the world) to trust in him and be transformed into missional people. This means he can decisively turn the hearts and choices of humans such that he is absolutely in control over them.

(5) In Rev. 6:11 John affirms that the very number of Christians in this age who will be killed because of their faith has been determined by God’s sovereign will. This means that even something as evil as the killing of his people for their faith (arguably the most evil thing in the world that can happen) has been sovereignly determined by God, including who will kill, who will be killed, how many, when will they be killed, what are the decisions that stand behind the martyrs and the killers coming together, and what are the decisions behind the killers taking their actions, just to name a few.

(6) The trajectory of Revelation 4-22 is such that all which God has said would take place in this age and in the age to come, down to the most minute detail, will take place, because he is able to determine that outcome.

(7) That God possesses absolute sovereignty, carried out through his meticulous or detailed governance of all things, is also taught elsewhere in Scripture (1 Chronicles 29:10-18; Prov. 16:33; 21:1; Isaiah 46:9-11; Acts 4:28; 13:48; Rom. 8:28-30; 9:13-23, et. al.).

Why is it important we grasp God is sovereign in an absolute sense? In the book of Revelation, it is important because it reminds suffering believers that not one bad, difficult, or evil thing comes to them that has not first passed through God’s hands. In other words, he can and does have a purpose for it, and he can and will fulfill all his promises to such suffering Christians. Such promises cannot be thwarted by any event or being (seen or unseen)! As hard as it is to get our heads and hearts around, we know that if we or someone else is suffering because of our faith, God has decided he would permit this to take place according to his sovereign plan.

The reality that God has determined who and how many would be martyred for their faith (Rev. 6:11) and yet over and over again chapters 8-18 makes it clear he will judge such persecutors, means that free, responsible, real human choices (in the biblical sense of these words) are compatible with absolute divine sovereignty. This also is taught elsewhere in the Bible (e.g. Gen. 50:20; 1 Chronicles 29:10-18; Acts 2:23; 4:27-28; Phil. 2:12-13).

d. This Vision Is Strongly Connected Into Chapters 1-3 And So It Pertains To The Current Age And Not Merely Some Future Time At The End Of This Age When The Church Is Raptured. 1-2

This truth is seen in the following ways.

(1) The following clauses, “And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet,” and “At once I was in the Spirit,” all allude back to 1:10, where John introduces his first vision: “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet.” At the very least, this leads us to expect that what John sees here alludes to the same general time frame as that of chapter 1, which we have already seen applies to the church in this age. This is strengthened by the next piece of evidence.

(2) The clause, “I will show you what must take place after this,” we have already seen from 1:1, 19, is dependent upon Daniel 2:28, 29, 45, where Daniel interprets a vision King Nebuchadnezzar had, which looked a considerable distance into the future to see what would happen in the end times. John is making the point that he and we now live in the era of fulfillment. Because of the repetition of this clause, we are to conclude that the vision also focuses upon what is true in this age and not what is true of a future time when there is a rapture of the church out of this world.

(3) The vision of God the Father on his throne and the Son/Lamb with him is strongly connected into and may very well be a further explanation of the statement John makes in 3:21: “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.” 

(4) Revelation 3:21 also introduces a truth that also is alluded to in the vision of Revelation 4-5 and thus displays the strong connection between Jesus’ first having conquered and the church being able to conquer (see 5:5 and also the call to conquer that is given to each of the seven churches).

(5) It is emphasized in 5:9-10 that the redeemed are a kingdom and priest to God, which shows the New Covenant Church carries out the original mission given to Israel as seen in Exodus 19:6. This same point is also made in 1:6.

When we remember that every one of the messages to the seven churches in chapters 2-3 begins with a description of Jesus that comes right out of Rev. 1, every one of the promises given to the seven churches is seen as fulfilled in Revelation 21-22, and that chapters 6-22 flow right out of the throne room vision of Revelation 4-5 (compare 5:2, 5 with 6:1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12; 8:1-7; 11:15-19; 15:1ff.), we understand that the entire book is tightly put together and that chapters 1-20 all refer to this age and chapters 21-22 refer to the age to come (the latter in a manner that flows out of the former).

The conclusion, then, is that Rev. 4:1 cannot refer to a future secret rapture of the church, which would put all the events of chapters 6-20 into the future and after that rapture. Those who have read the book in this manner have misread it.

In our next post we will cover the remaining five truths that unpack the reality of God’s sweet sovereignty in this current age.

Joyfully Resting On Our Sovereign God’s With You,

Tom

The Reproofs Of Discipline Are The Way Of Life (Revelation 2-3)

I encourage you to read Revelation 2-3 in preparation for this post and next Sunday’s sermon.

It has been hard for us to generate a sense of momentum in our series through the book of Revelation due to the breaks from it we have had. When I originally mapped out the schedle for it, I knew we would have two weeks out of Revelation—the week that I was in Peru and then this past week, with Bob Walz here to preach. What I did not count on was the week we had to cancel our service due to weather. What it has created is an inability for us to get a sense of where we have been in the book and where we are going. Because of this, I am starting my post with a review of where we have been so far.

Thus far we have discovered that first and foremost Revelation is a highly symbolic unveiling of Jesus Christ, and this such that if readers respond, the result will be great happiness (1:1-3). Much of this revelation of our Savior is designed to change our view of the world and of the church so that we see: 

·         Those of us who are in Jesus Christ have been saved by him, freed, and so we have the resources of the triune God to empower us for following Jesus. (1:4-8)

·         We are part of the kingdom and so can live underneath God’s reign, on mission, and to his glory. (1:9)

·         Because we live on mission in a broken and sin-cursed world, our following of Christ and love for the world brings push-back, even persecution sometimes, and this all in addition to the other trials we face. (1:9)

·         Yet, genuine believers endure through this, even if not perfectly. (1:9; ch’s. 2-3)

·         A big part of why we can be faithful growing in Jesus, serving him, and also sharing him with others is that he has us in his hands and he is in our midst to empower and encourage us. (1:12-20; ch’s. 2-3)

·         Much of the way we are propelled forward is both because of our love for Jesus Christ that leads to holiness and mission (2:1-7) and also by focusing upon the promises of eternal reward Jesus Christ makes to us. (2:7, 11, 17, 27-28; 3:4-5, 12, 20-21)

·         Additionally, we should be motivated to repent as needed, when confronted with our disobedience and idolatry. (2:4-5, 14-16, 20-23; 3:1-3, 15-20)

The need to repent prepares us for the last main message Jesus Christ wants churches in Revelation 2-3 to hear so they can be happy and healthy in him:  We must respond to and give correction. God wants us to respond to his correction and discipline he brings our way because he loves us (Prov. 3:11-12; Heb. 12:5-6); he wants us to make corrections to self as we see the need in his Word (Ps. 94:12; James 1:22-25); he wants us to be willing to give correction to and receive it from others (James 5:19-20), and all of this is necessary because, even though we have been saved and transformed by Jesus Christ, we are still inclined to all kinds of evil and can easily deceive ourselves (Heb. 3:12-13). The willingness to receive correction from and to give it to others is one of the marks of a true and healthy local church (see Mt. 16:19; 18:15-20; 1 Cor. 5:1-13; 2 Thes. 3:14-15; Titus 3:10)! Consider these contemporary confirmations of that point.

Gerald Bray (God Is Love, chapter 6 [emphasis added]) writes: 

Church discipline is too often understood in terms of who should and should not be allowed to belong to the fellowship of believers. People want to know what others believe and what commitment they can expect from them before admitting them to membership, which is perfectly understandable. However, the real task of church discipline begins after people have joined the fellowship—it is designed to help church members grow, not to chase away those who our human minds think are undesirable. It is hard not to think that the church could avoid a great deal of trouble by realizing that it is a home for sinners, not a company of the righteous who have no need of repentance. It can begin to do this by structuring its sense of discipline to focus not on punishment and exclusion but on forming a Christian mind and heart in those who have come under the teaching of the gospel.

Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears, Vintage Church: Timeless Truths And Timely Methods (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008), 38, write (emphasis added):  

The local church is a community of regenerated believers who confess Jesus Christ as Lord. In obedience to Scripture they organize under qualified leadership, gather regularly for preaching and worship, observe the biblical sacraments of baptism and Comunion, are unified by the Spirit, are disciplined for holiness, and scatter to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission as missionaries to the world for God’s glory and their joy.

Mack Stiles, “Nine Marks Of A Healthy Parachurch Ministry,” 9 Marks eJournal, 8, 2 (March/April, 2011) explains (emphasis added): 

The church is the God-ordained local assembly of believers who have committed themselves to each other. They gather regularly, they teach the Word, celebrate communion and baptism, discipline their members, establish a biblical structure of leadership, they pray and give together. Certainly the church may do more, but it is not less than this.

Notice how all three agree with Scripture and what the Church has historically affirmed, that one of the marks of a healthy and true church is discipline. In other words, there is a willingness to give and receive correction.

In Revelation 2-3 we discover this need for correction in three main areas.

1. We Are To Give And Receive Correction In Regard To False Teaching And Practice. 

We see this several places in these two chapters. Jesus commends the church in Ephesus for correcting false teachers (2:2), and for hating the works of false teachers, as Jesus himself does (2:6). Yet, he goes on to tell them they have left the love they had at first, need to repent, and to return to it (2:4-5). This certainly can be at the heart of much false belief and teaching. Jesus exhorts the church in Pergamum for allowing idolatrous, false teaching, and immorality (2:14-15), and he similarly exhorts the church in Thyatira for the same reasons (2:20). He even goes so far as to tell the church in Sardis they are dead and need to wake up (3:1-3).

What we see over and over again in these chapters is that we must be willing to be corrected, to make corrections to self, and to correct others in regard to false teaching and practice. The receiving and giving of correction in love to one another is particularly important since there are so many aspects of our thinking and behavior that we can be blinded to by the hostile and anti-Christian cultures around us. It is easy for us to be like the proverbial frog in the kettle. In other words, as the heat is turned up around us and pressue is put on us to change our beliefs to match those in vogue around us, we keep giving in little by little until we find ourselves in boiling waters of great compromise and heresy!

There is a second area in which we must give and receive correction.

2. We Are To Give And Receive Correction In Regard To Deafening Idolatry. 

Idolatry is “believing in created things, rather than the Creator, for our hope and happiness, significance and security” (New City Catechism, #17).

Idolatry is a strong emphasis throughout these two chapters seen in the exhortation at the end of each message, “he who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches” (2:7a, 11a, 17a, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). This statement arises from the reality that we become like what we worship—blind and deaf (Psalm 115:4-8; Isaiah 44:9) and so we do not have ears to hear what God is saying to us (Isaiah 6:9-10). Idolatry, which usually includes love and desire for good things, makes us wobbly, unstable, and unresponsive to those things that are important to God, as if we are drunk on other things (Revelation 14:8). Typically these other loves and desires are confirmed by the cultures around us that make them seem normative, the way things ought to be. When this happens we simply don’t hear what God is saying to correct us or we explain it away as too extreme to follow—the weird and unusual view of a pastor or teacher.

This is why gospel community is so important. In other words, we need to come together by the gospel’s influence on us and for the purpose of helping each other live out the effects of the gospel—to correct one another when we are in danger of sin’s hardening and deception (Heb. 3:12-13), and also to spur each other on to love and good works (Heb. 10:24).

Keeping away from idolatry is so important that John ends his first epistle with the admonition, “keep yourself from idols” (1 John 5:21). Yet, we usually need the aid of each other to do this.

One of the ways to do this is to commit to a Bible Fellowship and an Iron Man/Woman team.

The final area in which we are to give and receive correction is a catch-all. In other words, it is every and any other area.

3. We Are To Change Course No Matter What Wrong Path We Are On. 

If we are not willing to do this, Jesus may: War against us (2:16); remove our lampstand, i.e. our witness as a church (2:5); bring sickness and death (2:22-23); come upon us for discipline as a thief, unexpectedly (3:2-3); and remove from us his protection and empowerment (3:15-20).

Whether or not we live faithfully, on mission, for God’s glory, as joyful followers, and endure in this all truly matters. Whenever we are off the path we are to make corrections. If God speaks to us through the Word as we read it alone, through a fellow believer, in a book, by a sermon, or while sitting under someone’s teaching, we are to receive and make corrections. We also are to help our family members, our brothers and sisters in Christ, to do the same.

Conclusion

It is a fearful and sober thing, to ignore the conviction and/or correction of God—directly upon conscience, through a friend/fellow believer, or through a pastor or teacher. Therefore, we need to develop a responsiveness to how God wants to grow us and change us, rather than protection against what he wants to do.

We should remember “…the reproofs of discipline are the way of life” (Proverbs 6:23). And, we need to help each other in this whole matter because of the joy of growing in our knowledge of Christ and of following Him (Rev. 1:1-3).

And You Will Be My Witnesses (Revelation 2-3)

Because we did not have our service on Sunday, I will preach the message next Sunday (Feb. 11) that I had planned for this past Sunday (Feb. 4). What that means is that the sermon I had originally planned for Feb. 11 I will not preach at all. So, that material will be covered only in this post. So, to be clear, the post that prepares us for next week’s sermon was last week’s post. This week’s post will not be followed up by a corresponding sermon.

This is our fifth week in the book of Revelation and I am sure that we have been surprised by what the book has talked about so far. After all, many of us anticipated this series because of the fantastic visions and material in the book, as well as the possibility we would look into the future. Certainly there are those visions and there is that forward look into the end times. Yet, we miss what the book is about, if we do not see it exhorts churches today, living between the first and second comings of Christ, with how to remain faithful in holiness and mission in the midst of hostile cultures.

As we make our way topically through the messages to the seven churches in chapters 2-3, we especially see this very practical bent. Last week we discovered the importance of retaining and growing our love for Christ so we can have adequate motivation to pursue holiness and live on mission. Now, this week, we look more closely at who this Jesus is, why his presence with us, and his knowledge of us, along with his promised future reward, all should captivate our hearts so we will be his faithful witnesses.

To start, let’s look at what this Jesus is like who is in our midst.

1. JESUS IS IN THE MIDST OF HIS CHURCH TO EMPOWER US FOR MISSION AND TRIALS, AND TO CORRECT US. 

Let’s look at the different ways Jesus is described in these two chapters.

A. He Is In Our Midst And We Are In His Hands. 2:1

In this verse we read: “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘[Thus says the one] who holds the seven stars in his right hand, [the one] who walks among the seven golden lampstands.” Since we looked at this verse and truth last week, we need spend little time on it, other than to remind ourselves that Jesus is present with us as a congregation, to empower us for mission and against difficulties. Additionally, we are in his hands and so nothing can happen to us that he has not at least allowed. This means he can not only bring good out of it, but also can work in our behalf to help us.

In the rest of the descriptions of Jesus given to the other churches we see even more about why his presence and sovereign plan for our lives should make a difference.

B. He Is Sovereign Over History As The Eternal One And, At the Same Time, Is The Resurrected Lord Who Has Accomplished New Life For Us. 2:8

Here we read: “Thus says the first and the last, who was dead and came alive.”  These same two descriptions of Jesus are tied together in the chapter one vision of him (1:17-18): “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, ‘Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.’”

This description of Jesus shows he is God and, as such, is stronger than those who may oppose our ministry (cf. Is. 41:4; 48:12; Rev. 1:8). He is in control of history and so can work in our behalf—and yet not only this, as the resurrected Savior he has secured our life and future. As such, as he exhorts the church in Smyrna, so we must remain faithful to him even in the face of opposition, push-back, and full-out persecution (Rev. 2:8-11)! The point is similar to what Paul makes in 1 Cor. 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

C. He Judges And Disciplines Those In And Out Of The Church, As Needed. 2:12

Here is how he is described: “And unto the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘Thus says the one who has the sharp two-edged sword.’” To a church located in a place filled with much pagan and imperial religion and also a strong Jewish population—and so they would have faced much push back and persecution—Jesus exhorts them to overcome this idolatrous spirit so they can avoid discipline, judgment, and can have eternal life. That he has the “two-edged sword” refers to the fact he is judge and one who can discipline (see Rev. 19:15). Additionally, because he knows the state of each church infallibly, he also knows those who need comfort in the midst of affliction and those who need to be afflicted since they are inappropriately comfortable.

This certainly corrects the current popular view of Jesus Christ among most evangelicals who see him as a Mr. Rogers-type figure who would never judge or discipline!

D. He Is The Only Son Of God, The One Worthy Of Worship, And The Only Ultimate Judge. 2:18

Because the situation at Thyatira was similar to that of the church in Pergamum, Jesus gives a similar picture of himself: “And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘Thus says the Son of God, the one who has his eyes as a flame of fire and his feet like burnished bronze.’”  The message here is stronger since the church had moved that much further down the road of idolatry.

E. He Is The One Who Brings The Fully Empowering Spirit Of God To Us. 3:1

To a church in a town that twice in its history had been captured by enemies due to lack of vigilance, Jesus speaks with warnings about their lack of vigilance, reminds them they are in his hands, and also reminds them his Spirit is present among them, not only to reveal where they truly are, but also to empower them so they can be vigilant: “And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘Thus says the one who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.’”

F. He Is God, The Only One Who Can Save Sinners. 3:7

Referring back to the chapter one vision (1:18), we read: “And unto the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘Thus says the holy one, the true one, the one who has the keys of David, the one who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens.’”

Regarding Philadelphia one commentator explains: 

In appreciation for imperial reconstruction aid after an earthquake (a.d. 17), Philadelphia was briefly renamed Neocaesarea (“Caesar’s New City”), but Jesus promises his suffering church an infinitely greater name, “the city of my God, the new Jerusalem” (v. 12). Philadelphia lies near a fertile valley, especially suited for growing wine grapes. Inscriptions from Philadelphia mention worship of Zeus and Hestia, and the Roman imperial cult was already present by the first century a.d. An inscription from a nearby town mentions a synagogue in that town. Christians in Philadelphia later received a letter from the early church father Ignatius (c. a.d. 110), and they suffered during the martyrdom of Polycarp (c. 155).

Christ commended the church for its enduring witness—a witness he will enable them to keep. He also encourages them to persevere by his grace so they can experience his full end-times rewards.

The reality he can fully save them and all believers should encourage us to remain faithful, no matter what level of trials, push back, or persecution we face.

G. He Is The Creator And The Ultimate Faithful And True Witness. 3:14

One commentator helpfully provides some historical background to this town:

Damaged by an earthquake in a.d. 60, self-sufficient Laodicea, a commercial center and site of thriving medical and textile industries, declined imperial disaster relief. The city did not see itself as “poor, blind, and naked” (v. 17), nor did the complacent church within it. In this last church alone Jesus finds nothing to commend. Laodicea was famous for its worship of Zeus, who appears on some of the city’s coinage.

Referring to the supply of tepid water in the town that was unlike the cold water that was piped into Laodicea for drinking and unlike the hot water springs in the area that were good for medicinal or therapeutic purposes, Jesus unveils through the pen of John that the church was useless, for they had an ineffective witness and mission. They were in such a deplorable situation that there was nothing for which he could commend them.

Yet, he, as the Creator (the one who could change and re-create them) and the true witness (who could also work in them to be faithful witnesses) can transform them, if they are willing to answer his call and return to fellowship with him (3:20).

Part of the reason that we must look to Jesus’ empowering and correcting presence is that we face trials, as well as temptations simply to give up. This is why we must pay attention to the main take away in these two chapters, to endure patiently.

2. CHURCHES ARE TO ENDURE PATIENTLY. 

Though we won’t spend a lot of time here, consider what is said to each church…

A. 2:2-3: “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. 3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary.”

B. 2:9-10: “I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation.” (Dependent upon Daniel, see Beale)

C. 2:13, 17: “Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells…. To the one who conquers….”

D. 2:19, 25: “I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first…. Only hold fast what you have until I come.”

E. 3:4: “Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.”

F. 3:10-11: “Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. 11 I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” (Compare to John 17:15)

G. 3:15-20: “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 17 For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. 19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. 21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”

So, we are not only called to faithful worship and witness, but to endure in these, even in the face of trials, persecution, and the temptation to give up.

Right now, our challenge in southcentral Nebraska is not full-blown persecution. Instead, it is our fear of what might happen, if we were his witnesses: Rejection, people thinking we are weird, losing our accolades from others, being seen as different, out-of-step, and maybe even negative employment results.

How do we deal with this?  It is found in the empowering, encouraging reality of Christ’s presence—especially as we grasp all the reasons why he is sufficient to take care of us and empower us.

Yet, there is another motivation for us…

3. CHURCHES ARE TO BE MOTIVATED BY THE PROMISE OF THE REWARD OF ETERNAL LIFE AND THUS WE ARE TO PERSEVERE (TO CONQUER). 

Consider all the promises made to the churches in these two chapters, if we persevere in and by Christ. They are all also mentioned in the last chapters of the book of Revelation, which not only shows the book is tightly tied together, but these rewards are very important motivations for godly living.

A. 2:7b (eat of the tree of life [cf. Gen. 2:9; 3:24]).

B. 2:10, 11b (crown of life and not hurt by the second death).

C. 2:17b-c (eat of hidden manna and white stone with new name).

D. 2:26-28 (rule over the nations and given the morning star).

E. 3:5 (clothed in white, not blotted out of book of life, confessed before Father).

F. 3:12 (pillar in temple with name of God and God’s city written on them).

G. 3:21 (sit with Jesus on throne).

CONCLUSION 

In Acts 1:8, after Jesus told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the promised Holy Spirit to come upon them, he also explained what the result would be: “And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Part of the permanent and powerful indwelling of the Holy Spirit that the New Covenant Church experiences is that we are transformed into those who want to and can be witnesses unto Jesus Christ before others. Part of the way this happens is that the Spirit applies the person, power, presence, and work of Christ among the church and the Spirit can do this since Jesus Christ won for the church this pouring out of the Spirit through his death and resurrection (cf. Acts 2:33).

The church is not only empowered for mission by the presence of Christ and his Spirit among the church, but also encouraged toward faithfulness and perseverance by focusing upon the presence of Jesus Christ (and why he is sufficient to help us face trials, push back, and persecution) and the eternal rewards he promises to those who endure.

These first chapters of Revelation surprise us by calling us to this central question: Are we pursuing holiness and living on mission for the glory of God, even when to do so puts us at odds with the cultures around us?  There are ample motivations here either to start this pursuit or to persevere in it.

Joyfully Serving As A Witness To Jesus With You,

Tom

The Love You Had At First (Revelation 2:1-7)

When people visit our church for the first time, especially if they have been more accustomed to congregations filled with more ritual or liturgy, usually their first impression revolves around how “un-churchy” it can seem. They might even walk away thinking, “Wow, I don’t even feel I was at church today.”

A similar experience belongs to those who are working their way through Revelation 1-3 for the first time. They might conclude, “Wow, the content in these first chapters seems pretty normal, practical, in fact, almost unremarkable”—especially if what they were expecting was to get into a great amount of fantastic material that talks about beasts, marks on your hand or forehead, battles, demons, angels, time charts, and the like. Through the first three chapters some might think, “It all seems just so practical and focused upon who the church is and how we are to function!”

And such a response is right on the money. After all, the book is not about appeasing our curiosity about the future. It is about how to function on mission as the church, especially as we face a hostile culture. This is why the opening to the book (1:1-8), along with its first vision in chapter one (what we have covered so far), speaks of living on mission, facing a hostile culture, and persevering.

You might be surprised to discover, as we get into the second and third chapters, we find much more of the same. Here, John, while exiled to the island of Patmos for his evangelistic work (1:9), addresses individually the seven churches he has already mentioned in 1:11—seven congregations located in what is Turkey today, and who represent the global church of all ages. It seems the order in which the apostle addressed them was based upon their location: “These churches formed a natural route for a circuit rider, starting in Ephesus and moving in a clockwise direction through Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea” (this is the same order as his addresses).[1]

Each of the messages in Revelation 2-3 has a similar order to it:

1. Addressee: “Unto the angel in…, write.”

2. Identification and description of Christ, based on the vision in ch. 1: “The words of him who….”

3. Affirmation that Christ knows about the church.

4. An evaluation—either a rebuke, commendation, or both. We should note there is no commendation in the message to the church in Laodicea (3:14-22) and there is no rebuke in the messages to Smyrna (2:8-11) or Philadelphia (3:7-13).

5. An exhortation to the church to take needed action (either to remain true or to change their course).

6. A statement of what Christ will do, based upon how they respond.

7. A Promise to the one who conquers.

8. A call to hear: “He who has an ear….”

We should also note that numbers 7 and 8 can be in reverse order.

Something else we find out in these two chapters is that there is a good deal of repetition of subjects within them and repetition of subjects already addressed in chapter one. Because of this, we will approach these two chapters topically in three sermons. Nevertheless, we will briefly introduce ourselves to each church as we move through the two chapters. We will discover a number of application points given to the Church worldwide throughout this age for how we should function—application points we will cover in these next three sermons out of chapters 2-3.

The first application point we discover, the one we will focus on this morning, is this: Churches are to have and retain their love for Christ that leads to a love for gospel ministry.

We will begin by seeing how this message arises in Christ’s words to the church in Ephesus (2:1-7).

How This Message Arises

John starts by writing: “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write….” Nowhere else does Scripture clearly teach that a person has a guardian angel, nor does it even imply that a local church would have an angel assigned to it. What appears to be taking place here is that the vision of the seven angels (or the seven stars, see Rev. 1:20; 2:1b) signifies the churches have a heavenly existence. In other words, though they are located on the earth in this age, their existence is largely in heaven with heavenly realities applied to them, and they are held in the Savior’s hand. So, to address the angel is to address the church itself.[2] This is a difficult aspect of this passage to understand and does not seem to have unmistakable Old Testament (or any other) background to help. However, whatever it means does not have great bearing upon the understanding of the passage one way or the other.  

Ephesus, a place where Paul ministered (Acts 19-20), which had a church to which Paul wrote (Ephesians), and which was the location where Timothy was when Paul wrote to him (1, 2 Timothy), was a major center for Christianity from the end of the first century through the fifth century, with some major Church councils held there. At the same time, it was also a major center for the worship of the goddess, Artemis (or Diana), the goddess of love (Acts 19).  So, no doubt there was a good amount of push back on the church from the surrounding cultures and they needed to be reminded they are in the hands of the sovereign Savior, who is also in their midst (1b-c): “The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.” This first description of Christ reminds us there is strong connection between the chapter one vision and the specific messages to all seven churches in Rev. 2-3.

It is not just Ephesus that needs this reminder. We need to hear this truth, which is a repetition of what Jesus promises his disciples when he commissioned us to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:20): “And behold I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  

The presence of the sovereign Savior among the church not only reveals he is with us to help and support, it also displays he knows our situation (verses 2-3): “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary.” 

Here Jesus commends the Ephesians for the works they did, their endurance, the fact they are not giving up in the face of hard situations, and their opposition to false teaching. There is much for which Jesus can commend this local congregation!  These two verses remind us just how important these same traits are for us today. In these we should follow the example of the church in Ephesus.

Yet, there is one way in which we should not follow their example. In verse 4 we read: “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.” The way this is worded, they began leaving behind this love sometime in the past and still have not come back to it. I am of the strong conviction that what John has in mind here is the love for Christ that the Ephesians had when the first believers came to Christ and the church was new. Since Jesus goes on to say that if they do not return to that love, he will remove their lampstand—i.e. their light or mission to the world (Rev. 2:5), I believe he is saying that this love they had for Christ at the beginning led to gospel work, i.e. disciplemaking. This is also supported by the strong emphasis upon the church living on mission in the near (Rev. 1:5, 6, 9, 12, 20) and far (Rev. 5:10; 11:1-2; 12:11, et. al.) contexts of the book.

Additionally, this understanding is supported by the reality that in verse 5 “the works you did at first” appears to be connected to and parallel with their love they had at first. And, elsewhere in the messages to the seven churches “works” speak of missional works (see 2:19). There may also be a parallel in 3:15-20, where the church in Laodicea is addressed. There, in verse 16, the church is denounced as “lukewarm,” i.e. neither hot nor cold. In other words, they were no longer useful as a church. This description arises from the reality that, “There were well-known hot springs in Hierapolis, just 6 miles…from Laodicea [that were useful for therapeutic or medicinal purposes], and a good supply of cold running water in nearby Colosse [that was piped into Laodicea]. Laodicea itself, however, appears to have had a tepid and barely potable water supply. This would have been a potent symbol for this congregation of its church’s ineffectiveness [or uselessness].”[3]

This message to the church in Ephesus is rounded out not only with a call to repent (5a), a promise of what will happen if they don’t (5b), a further word of commendation (6), a call to hear what the Spirit is saying (7a), and a promise of full life to those who listen and conquer (7b). Consider: 

Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. 6 Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

There are two realities we need to note before moving on to what is next. To begin, I hope you are seeing the book of Revelation has a strong emphasis upon outreach and mission. This is to be at the core of who the church is and what we do.

Additionally, each of these churches is addressed as a collective unit. Certainly, a church is made up of individuals who can experience God’s blessing or discipline apart from others. However, a local congregation also is a community that stands together and rises or falls together. God can bless, discipline, or judge whole congregations on their faithfulness or lack thereof. Along this line, we get the idea that what can often happen to churches that cease living on mission is that they die and close their doors. Responsible and faithful leaders, as well as teachers in the church, must cast vision for, equip, and call the church to live on mission that flows out of their knowledge of and love for Christ!

Now that we have seen how the main message arises, we must next discover just how a church leaves its love for Christ and gospel ministry.

How A Church Leaves Its Love For Christ And Gospel Ministry

Though John does not explicitly tell us this in these verses, there are hints in this passage and in the context.

1. If we keep in mind the strong connection these messages have to the chapter one vision and its explanatory preface (1:9-20)—a vision designed to help the church step up to the plate and endure on mission, we see that ignoring the Word of God, the very Word that reveals to us Christ and the importance of his mission (1:10-11), leads to loss of that mission. This does not mean that the Bible is not being taught at all within such a congregation. After all, Ephesus is commended for endurance, having some works among them, and opposing false teaching. However, when individual members are not tracking with the Scriptures and so are not being strengthened and equipped to live on mission and if the leaders are not teaching in a manner that is equipping people to live on mission intentionally and effectively (see Eph. 4:12), this can lead to loss of that gospel ministry-producing love for Christ.

2. At the end of each of the messages to the seven churches (including here in the message to Ephesus: Rev. 2:7) Christ says through John to the churches, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” This is an allusion to Isaiah 6:9-10 and the hardness of heart, that unwillingness and even moral inability to hear, that most likely comes from idolatry and the truth we become like the idols we worship—namely, blind and deaf (cf. Isaiah 44:9). When we understand that idolatry is at the heart of all sin (cf. Ex. 20:3-6; 2 Kings 17:7; Is. 65:7, 11-12; Rom. 1:23; 1 Cor. 10:7; 10:14; Gal. 3:5; 5:20; 1 Pt. 4:3), this further supports the reality that idolatry leads to our loss of love for Christ and gospel mission. We have so many things in our present world vying for our attention and heart allegiance that can easily displace the preeminence of Christ in our hearts and schedules and our putting his mission on the back burner (or ignoring it altogether).

3. The first two factors behind losing our mission lead to two more:

a. Our surrounding cultures. The word “culture” refers to how we seek to make order of the world around us, to define it, and to make it rich and flourishing. We can see this from the use of “culture” in “agriculture,” that act of bringing order to the land in such a way that it is fruitful and flourishes. As a result, the word “culture” can also refer to how we seek to find purpose and meaning in the world, which can be seen in the use of a related word, “cult,” which can refer to a sect, religion, or a way of explaining ultimate meaning and purpose in the world. The cultures that surround us (made up of the people around us) have made decisions about how we find meaning and purpose in life, what makes for a successful life, and the kinds of actions that are acceptable. At the very least we can say here that virtually all cultures that surround us oppose speaking into the life of another person so that they can come to know Jesus Christ as Savior. It is “none of our business.” That part of our surrounding culture is strong, along with all the other idols in those cultures that compete for our attention and take our eyes off Jesus Christ. If we are not intentionally fighting off these strong influences, we will most likely give into them and will not live on mission.

b. Our fear of what others think. Related to the cultures and people around us, most of us are fearful of living out our faith too specifically or being missional in it, since this is not what is socially acceptable. Such cowardice is probably referenced in Rev. 21:8. Again, we must be much in God’s Word and must depend upon the empowerment we have through the presence of Christ and his Spirit in us, if we are to overcome this (Rev. 1:12-20). Such need for empowerment also means we will be praying much so we can be faithful to Christ on mission.

Conclusion

So, given what we have seen here it should not be too hard to outline how we can overcome the things that help us stay on mission. However, we will say more about this in our sermon Sunday.

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[1] “The Seven Churches Of Asia Minor,” in the Archaeological Study Bible, 2051.

[2] This seems to be similar to what we find in Daniel (See Dan. 10:20-21; 12:1).

Another possibility is that since “angel” can mean messenger, it could mean that the angel represents the pastoral leadership of the church. The problem with this understanding is that it does not seem to have a parallel anywhere else (including in Revelation). However, the sense of the passage would not really be different if this is what is meant.

[3] “The Seven Churches Of Asia Minor,” in the Archaeological Study Bible, 2051.