THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST
REVELATION 1:1-9
Introduction:
This book does not contain “revelations,” but is ONE GREAT REVELATION. Its name is “The Revelation of Jesus Christ.”
The word “revelation” means “unveiling” or “uncovering.” Thus this book reveals God’s plans for the future of mankind and especially for those who have received His Son, Jesus Christ, as their personal Savior.
John was on “the isle that is called Patmos”
I. THINGS WHICH MUST SHORTLY COME TO PASS
A. God gave the Revelation to His Son, v. 1; Amos 3:7, “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.”
1. God has raised up a PROPHET like unto Moses, Deuteronomy 18:18, “I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.”
a. The very SON of God, THE MEDIATOR between man and God, 1 Timothy 2:5, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;”
b. This Revelation is of A BETTER COVENANT, Hebrews 12:24, “And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.”
2. The PROPHET SENT by God TO ISRAEL was NOT WELL RECEIVED, Mark 6:4, “But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.”
a. Jesus was REJECTED by His people, John 1:11, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
b. However, Jesus was FAITHFUL to FULFILL the WILL of His Father, John 17:4, “I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.”
c. Jesus FINISHED the WORK of REDEMPTION, John 19:30, “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”
B. The Son of God gave the Revelation TO HIS SERVANT, John, v.1; Revelation 22:6, “And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.”
C. John gave the Revelation TO THE CHURCHES, v. 11, “Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.”
D. The churches gave the Revelation TO THE WORLD, Mark 16:15, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”
II. JOHN BEAR RECORD…
A. Of the WORD of God, John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
1. Jesus is the Word of God INCARNATE, John 1:14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,)full of grace and truth.”
2. John KNEW the “WORD OF LIFE,” the Lord Jesus, PERSONALLY, 1 John 1:1-2, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)”
B. Of the TESTIMONY of Jesus Christ, John 19:35, “And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.”
1. John was a WITNESS of the MINISTRY of Christ, 1 John 1:3, “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.”
2. This IS the VERY SON of God, John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
C. Of ALL THE THINGS he saw, v. 2; v. 19, “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;”
1. John made a FAIR and FAITHFUL RECORD of what he saw, John 21:24, “This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.”
2. The PURPOSE of John’s record was “THAT YE MIGHT BELIEVE,” John 19:35, “And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.”
a. John VERIFIED that the Father HAD SENT His Son to be the SAVIOR of the world, 1 John 4:14, “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.”
b. He VERIFIED the TESTIMONY of the Son of God, Acts 4:20, “For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”
CONCLUSION:
John was a faithful witness and a faithful writer of what the Lord had revealed to him. “The Revelation of Jesus Christ” is most important document ever given to mankind.
It is THE MESSAGE OF LIFE. The Lord Himself declared in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”