Is there anyone here who does not recognize this symbol? It is the symbol of Nike, the shoe maker. It is known as the Nike “swoosh.” What is this symbol supposed to represent? It is a wing. Why a wing? Believe it or not, this fits in with what we are going to talk about today. Our main text today is Revelations 1 and 2.
The revelation of 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 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. – Rev. 1:1-3
This is really a prologue, telling us what the nature of this book and how it came to be. The word for “revelation” means “unveiling.” It is removing the veil, so to speak, of Christ, to look at Him directly. It is prophecy; that is, it is telling us what is to yet take place. It tells us that an angel communicated this prophecy to John, and from elsewhere in the book we know it was by speaking and by imparting visions. It tells us that we are blessed by reading these words, blessed by hearing them, and blessed by taking them to heart. This is encouraging to me, because even if I say nothing of value today, you will be blessed and benefit from the time solely because of the words of Scripture we read together. Now it is my desire and prayer that not only do you read these words with me, and not only do you hear these words, but that you will take them “to heart” – that they will sink down deep and affect you at your core.
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 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. – Rev. 1:4-6
Out of all the openings in all the “letter” books of the Bible, this is my favorite. I can’t even read this without getting excited. We could easily spend a whole week, maybe even a month, just really fleshing out what is being said here! Be blessed by letting these truths sink down into your heart.
“Him who is, and who was, and who is to come” is God the Father. He is eternal. Not only does this mean that He lives forever, but that He has lived forever. Our souls are eternal, in the sense that they will live forever, but God had already lived forever before He made us. For me this is a reminder that comparing God and me is not like comparing apples and oranges; it is more like comparing galaxies and atoms.
The seven spirits are a figurative way to describe the completeness of the Holy Spirit. Over and over in the Bible, seven symbolizes completeness, from the seven days of the creation week, to the seven churches, which we will talk about today. And then you also have Jesus Christ, and so, the entire Godhead in its trinity is here.
What does the passage say about Jesus? First, that He is the faithful witness. The word for “witness” is martys from which we get the word “martyr” which means one who dies for his faith. This is true of Jesus, but the word martys has a deeper meaning. What was Jesus the faithful witness of? He was the faithful witness of God. He showed us God’s character; He unveiled God for us. By examining Jesus, we examine God. He was an absolutely faithful witness, meaning that when we examine Jesus, we don’t walk away with any, any wrong impressions of who God is. Jesus was (and is) the faithful witness.
The passage next says that He is the “firstborn from the dead.” This of course refers to His death and resurrection. He is the firstborn, meaning that there will be others, later. Who are these? You and me. So we look to Jesus not only as the perfectly faithful witness of the character and nature of God the Father, but as our future hope, in whom we can be assured that like Him, we too will arise from the dead to eternal life in the presence of God.
The third thing this passage says about Jesus is that He is the “ruler of the kings of the earth.” This is a powerful reminder that God is sovereign. He rules George W. Bush, He rules Vladimir Putin, and He rules Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Two of those three would dispute that, but it is true nevertheless. Rulers of the world may rebel against Him, but that in no way means that He is not still their ruler. I will say that it is generally not a wise thing to rebel against your ruler. The “kings of the earth” will learn this one day.
The fourth thing this passage says about Jesus is that He loves us. The faithful witness who has perfectly revealed God the Father to us, the firstborn of the dead, the ruler of the kings of the world, loves you and me. This is agape love. The crazy, willing-to-die-for-you hold-nothing-back kind of love.
The fifth thing this passage says about Jesus is that He “has freed us from our sins by His blood.” He has rescued us. Our sins did many things to us: they made us guilty before God, so guilty that we could not even stand in God the Father’s presence without being destroyed. The guilt of our sins carried a necessary death sentence, death in this life and eternal separation from God after this, because a Holy God and a sinful man simply cannot co-mingle. God would cease to be Holy if He tolerated sin in His midst. And our sins also became bondage for us, in that we were not just “casual sinners,” but “hopelessly addicted sinners.” We were truly addicts to sin, apart from Christ. And these sins held us down, they shackled us, and there was nothing we could do in our power to break free from their bonds. But Jesus has freed us! By His blood He took on our death sentence for us. He has paid the price of our sin. He made us appear sinless before God, with a new start, quite literally with a new life. No longer are we bound in the chains of sin, but we are truly freed. The addiction has been broken. Praise God!
The sixth and final thing this passage says about Jesus is that He “has made us a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father.” The prison convicts have been released and asked to serve in the positions of highest honor! This is a job we begin here on earth in some ways, but will be a physical reality in heaven for eternity. Again, praise God!
John then goes on with a beautiful word picture of what is to come:
Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the peoples of the 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." – Rev. 1:7-8
Zechariah 12:10 says “They shall look upon Him whom they have pierced,” and Zechariah 13:6 says “And they shall say unto Him in that day, what are the meanings of these wounds in Your hands?” Even those who pierced Him will look upon Him.
Then John gives more background about this book.
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." – Rev. 1:9-11
According to Eusebius’ ancient book on church history, all the other apostles became martyrs. Then they tried to kill John by boiling him in oil, but he somehow survived and so they exiled him on Patmos. Patmos is a tiny island in the Aegean sea, between Greece and Turkey. Its area is 13 square miles, roughly the area of Clemson university. John’s words about “suffering” and “patient endurance” seem like extreme understatements to me.
One possible translation of “On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit” is “I was taken by the spirit to the Day of the Lord;” in other words, in a vision, John saw what is to come. This loud voice “like a trumpet” told him to write what he saw and send it to the seven churches. What does a voice like a trumpet sound like? Loud! Clear! Authoritative! To be obeyed!
I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone "like a Son of Man,"[dressed in a robe reaching down to His feet and with a golden sash around His chest. His head and hair were 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 out of His mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. – Rev. 1:12-16
I have to say this is a terrifying image. I mean, really picture this. His eyes like blazing fire – intense, so much so that you feel His gaze physically, that you cannot look into His eyes. His feet were like metal heated to be white hot – I picture the sound of a roaring flame (from that furnace) continually heating them up. His voice – like Niagara Falls – a deafening waterfall. In His right hand He held stars. How do you hold stars? Again I picture intensity, much greater brightness than that of seven suns, for that is what stars are. Intense heat, and intense light. A sword from His mouth. And more intensity, like the sun, radiating from His face. How would you react to this, except to say, “That’s it; I’m a goner for sure.”
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 behold 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." – Rev. 1:17-20
John’s reaction is just like ours would be. How could it be otherwise? But this terrifying vision says “Do not fear.” This is Jesus Himself, the One who was dead and who lives forever. He instructs John to right what you have seen (that is, what we are reading right now in Chapter 1), what is now (that is, what concerns the present age of the church, before Christ’s return, described in Chapters 2 and 3), and what will take place later (the rest of the book of Revelations). The Greek for the “what will take place later” is meta autos, and the exact same phrase, meta autos, begins Chapter 4.
But my real focus today is on Chapters 2 and 3, and really, on just one particular phrase that repeats itself over and over. Rather than read the entire chapters, I am going to summarize and highlight certain verses.
Each of the seven churches mentioned in verse 9 of Chapter 1 receive a message.
1. Ephesus is praised for hard work and perseverance, as well as its identification and shunning of false teachers. But it is warned about forsaking its first love and told to repent and do the things they did at first. It ends with this:
To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. – Rev. 2:7b
2. Smyrna is told that He knows of their suffering and poverty, but they are rich. He warns them of further sufferings to come, but they are told to remain faithful. It ends with this:
He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. – Rev. 2:11b
3. Pergamum is told they remain true and have not renounced their faith, even despite being in a place where “Satan has his throne.” But they are told they hold to teachings of Balaam and the Nicolatians. What are these? The teachings of Balaam refer to encouraging the worship of idols within the church. Modern examples might include worshiping Mary or other saints, but it could be anything like this. To understand the teachings of the Nicolatians, understand that nikos means priest and laos means body, the common people. The Nicolatian teaching is that of a separate priesthood as opposed to the priesthood of all believers. Modern examples might include the Roman Catholic priesthood, with the teaching that one must go through them rather than directly to God for forgiveness of sins; beyond this it could be any sort of over-elevation of “clergy” over “laity.” In a way, this is also a form of idolatry. The section to Pergamum ends with this:
To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it. – Rev. 2:17b
4. Thyatira is praised for growing in deeds, love, faith, service, and perseverance. But they are warned against a false prophet named Jezebel, who encourages immorality, and told to stop allowing her influence among them. There is some idolatry here as well. I think immorality is often rooted in idolatry. It ends with this:
To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— 'He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery'— just as I have received authority from My Father. I will also give him the morning star. – Rev. 2:26b-28
5. Sardis is told the following: I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die… They are told to remember what they have received and heard, obey it, and repent. It says there are a few who “have not soiled their clothes” but will wear white. These are people apparently who have heard the gospel but most have not really believed or taken it seriously. They are church-goers but not believers. It ends with this:
He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before My Father and His angels. – Rev. 3:5
6. Philadelphia is told that He knows they are weak, but they have remained faithful and endured patiently. He tells them to “hold on” to what they have. “Hold on” might be better translated as “hold fast.” The meaning is, “Don’t let anyone or anything allow you to let go.” Of what? Their faith. It ends with this:
Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of My God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from My God; and I will also write on him My new Name. – Rev. 3:12
7. To Laodicea, here is what is said: “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.” The very next verse is one you have no doubt heard many times:
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. – Rev. 3:20
What is the message to Laodicea? They have forgotten their need of God. Jesus’ answer is to enter into a genuine relationship with Him. It ends with the following:
To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. – Rev. 3:21
Here is a brief summary of the warnings to the seven churches:
Ephesus: Do not forsake your first love!
Smyrna: Remain faithful in suffering!
Pergamum: Turn from all idols!
Thyatira: Turn from immorality!
Sardis: Embrace the gospel!
Philadelphia: Hold on!
Laodicea: Enter into relationship with Jesus!
I believe these all apply to people today. We can have faith grow cold and forsake our first love. We can give up and quit when we have suffering. This is not just persecution but can be the death of a loved one, cancer, rejection, and so on. We can turn to idols. These can be anything that we allow to grow in our lives to a point that we love it more than we can think of giving it up. Even good things can become idols, like the desire to become married, or to have children. We certainly can fall into immorality – lust is rampant in our society today. But it is more than that; it can be just about anything. Like Sardis, we have plenty of people today who go to church but aren’t Christian. Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian. We can certainly lose hold and stop holding on. We can be carried away by strange teachings, or just feel overwhelmed in a secular society. This is especially true if you are not in a good fellowship of other believers. And finally, we can be lukewarm, keeping Jesus at a distance but not letting Him come and “sup with us.” Perhaps the Holy Spirit is speaking to your life now about one of these 7 warnings. If so, take action in prayer and confession right now. Do not ignore His warnings.
Perhaps you are wondering about what I started my message with today. I have not forgotten. What in the world does the Nike logo have to do with all this? Well, each of the seven warnings ends with, as we have seen, the phrase “to him who overcomes.” The Greek word for “overcome” is nikeo, and the root word for this is nike. Like many words in Greek, this word is “loaded” with meaning because it refers to a Greek deity. The goddess Nike was the goddess of victory. Look at the picture below to see a statue of Nike. The Nike “swoosh” represents the wings of Nike. Notice the wreath about to presented to the victor.
For a number of weeks we are going to talk about what how we become “overcoming” Christians. Today I want to highlight what the word does not mean. Imagine someone running a long race. They run, and run, and run, and get slower, and start walking, but they don’t give up. It is two hours past the time of the winners when they finally come in and finish. Almost everyone is gone, but they are happy they finished. If you are running in a race yourself, this may be a perfectly fine goal, one you can be proud of. But this is not nikeo. Nikeo is victory, not finishing. It is winning. We are not supposed to just finish the Christian “race.” We are supposed to win! We are to defeat Satan in our lives and in the lives of those around us. In Revelation 2 and 3, Jesus is not talking about finishing, but winning. To those who win, all these fascinating things are given. So I challenge you today to raise your standards in the Christian race. We often talk about our “Christian walk” but we won’t while we do this series. Let’s not call it the “Christian walk” but the “Christian race.”Nikeo is relatively uncommon in the Bible. It is used to describe the Lord’s victory over death, sin, and Satan. Do you think Jesus finished, or won? His victory was complete.
Nikeo also describes our position as fellow heirs with Christ. We have a “positional” victory that is complete. “You have overcome the evil one.” – I John 2:14. “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” – I John 4:1-4.
Paul uses a special form of the word in Romans 8:37: hupernikeo. This is hard to translate, except to say, “exceedingly more than overcoming.” What is Romans 8:37? This:
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. – Rom. 8:37.
But in addition to this “positional” victory, we have a victory yet to win. This is what is described in Revelations 2 and 3. As we go through the coming weeks, we will talk about what victory looks like and how we obtain it. For now, let me just make one point: Everything is spiritual. What I mean is that our faith should affect every area of our lives. How we think. How we act. Even seemingly mundane things like our finances or our jobs can profoundly affect our faith, and our faith can profoundly affect these things. We should bring our entire lives – everything – under the Lordship of Christ. This is nikeo.
Let me close with this verse:
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. – I Cor. 9:27
No comments:
Post a Comment