Revelation 1:9-20 (NASB)
David Bruce Linn, Pastor-Teacher
24 October, 1999
All Rights Reserved
As the modern church has tried to find ways to help seekers move along the path to finding Christ it has been customary to speak not of Christians and non-Christians, not of believers and unbelievers, not of saved and unsaved, but of churched and unchurched. This is probably a helpful set of terms for outreach, as long as those distinctions do not remain permanently blurred. The great danger is for people to become complacent about their eternal destiny because they see themselves as "churched."
This problem did not begin with modern seeker outreach techniques. It occurred within the first few years of the New Testament church, and it is a massive problem of the twentieth century church. I would suggest to you that the first chapter of the Book of Revelation gives us a fresh way to test ourselves individually and as a church: Are we willing to fall at Christ's feet in worship? This chapter of God's holy word also leaves us with a frightening logical possibility. It is possible to be "churched," and even to have a profession of faith, and to be blaspheming Christ in our hearts and lives by our unwillingness to fall at his feet.
John the Apostle first described his general situation as he wrote the Book
of Revelation: "I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation
and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos,
because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus" (Rev. 1:9). We ought
not to see him as sitting under a shade tree by the Mediterranean in retirement.
Actually, he had been interrupted by the Roman government from pursuing his
ministry even in his old age. He was sent into exile on Patmos, and there was
good evidence that John was forced to labor in the mines. We think that he may
have been able to return to Ephesus at the rise to power of a new Roman emperor
in 96 A.D.
John then goes on to describe the most remarkable spiritual situation in which he found himself: "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day..." (1:10a). We often use the phrase "in the Spirit" to describe a blessed state of being in tune with what God is doing, and that is certainly true of John. What God was doing in John was described in 2 Peter 1:21b: "...men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God." Peter literally says "men being borne along by the Holy Spirit spoke from God." John had been chosen to write Scripture.
John says he was in this condition on what our translations call "the Lord's day," literally "the Lordian day." Usually we think of this as a reference to the first day of the week, or Sunday, but the phrase "the Lord's day" as Sunday did not begin to be in common use until later in the history of the church. While not being dogmatic, I believe that a confusion about the definition of "the day of the Lord" has caused a mistranslation. If you run your computer Bible on the phrase "the day of the Lord," you will discover that it refers to the day in which God will vent his wrath upon the earth because of sin. No believers will be present for this devastating judgment because of what is said in 1 Thessalonians 5:9, "For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ..."
Therefore I suggest to you that the Apostle is saying that he was transported
in visions to actually view the events of the Day of the Lord, and that fits
precisely with the command he received from the Lord in writing this book: "...And
I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, saying, "Write in
a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna
and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea."
Thus John wrote that he saw in a vision, for example, those who refused to worship
Christ trying to run away from this judgment: "...And they said to the mountains
and to the rocks, 'Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits
on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of their wrath
has come; and who is able to stand?'" (Rev. 6:16-17)
Did John recognize the voice that was speaking to him? John had spent much time
with the owner of that voice when it was much smaller, even to the point of
"leaning upon his breast" in quiet moments. But the vision John would now see
of his beloved Lord went far beyond anything he had ever seen, even the shining
glory on the mount of transfiguration: "And I turned to see the voice that
was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in
the middle of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching
to the feet, and girded across His breast with a golden girdle. And His head
and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a
flame of fire; and His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been caused
to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. And in
His right hand He held seven stars; and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged
sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength." (Rev. 1:12-16)
The Christ whom John knew as a friend and brother was revealed to him in a stunning vision. The glorified Christ was revealed as standing amidst seven lampstands which represent seven churches shedding the light of the good news of Christ. Christ was revealed in ceremonial priestly vestments, which completed within the one person the three roles of prophet, priest, and king shown in this chapter. His hair was white, a Biblical symbol of great honor (seniors, take note!). His eyes were a flaming fire, his feet were like glowing metal, his voice like a waterfall. In the grip of his almighty right hand were seven stars representing, I believe, holy angels assigned to the seven churches. The deadly Roman two-edged short sword, which looked like a tongue, was coming out of his mouth, representing the authority of Christ to judge everyone according to his word. The face of Christ, and probably the rest of him, was shining forth the shekinah glory like the hottest sun John had ever seen.
In the face of such a glorious vision of his beloved Lord, John fell at Jesus'
feet like a dead man: "And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as a dead man"
(1:17a). I do not believe that John passed out against his will, or that
God threw him down. This was an overwhelming experience of the power of God
overshadowing a man whose whole life had been spent bowing before Christ in
worship. I cannot tell you how it felt, or exactly how it worked, but Scripture
is replete with examples of people who fall down when confronted with the power
and glory of God. Others who did not know God also are seen in Scripture as
being knocked flat against their will by the sheer power of God, such as the
group of soldiers who came to arrest Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.
John may have been overwhelmed, but it was an overwhelming by the fear of the
Lord, which we learn by what Christ spoke to his beloved prostrate disciple:
"And He laid His right hand upon me, saying, 'Do not be afraid; I am the
first and the last...'" (1:17b). Since his conversion, John had always been
marked by a godly fear of the Lord. This was nothing new to him, but the intensity
jumped a thousandfold. It's like the difference between the static electricity
shocks we sometimes feel and being hit by lightning! John rejoiced to worship
at the feet of Christ. So should we who believe. It is, in fact, a blasphemy
to know of Christ and yet be unwilling to bend our wills beneath the mighty
power of his perfect will. We should all fall down at the feet of Christ in
this way.
As I write this, I am aware that there are worship environments today where many believers physically fall down. Let me caution us about two extremes. The godly man John fell, and we must never say within our hearts: "Lord, that's fine for John, but I'll never do that." On the other hand, I fear that there can be an implicit pressure in some meetings that falling down is absolute proof of God's blessing and power in our lives. Yet there is no explicit teaching of Scripture that falling is proof of blessing, since both believers and unbelievers are shown falling in the Biblical record. When we do fall, it should be because God has overshadowed us with such an awesome vision of his glory that we must worship at his feet.
Jerry Bridges has written a book entitled The Joy of the Fear of the Lord. As
John went down in the condition of joy and fear, Christ brought him a familiar
touch to comfort him. I wonder if John thought: "I know that touch!" And then
Christ brought him into a conscious reality of his glorified state by explaining,
in effect: "All this was veiled from you during my incarnation, but now see
me as I truly am." So Jesus spoke: "I am the first and the last, and the
living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the
keys of death and of Hades" (1:17b-18). "First and last" refers to his sovereignty
over all things. "The living One" refers to his self-existence--he needs nothing
whatsoever. Christ explains that in his incarnation, he suffered death and then
demonstrated his divinity by rising from the dead. Finally, Christ proclaims
himself the absolute ruler of every life, in this world and the world to come.
Technically, Hades is the Greek name for the intermediate state into which the
unbelieving go until their transfer to the place of final torment, called Gehenna,
or Hell. No one gets a second chance; this is merely God's way of managing the
eternal destinies of those who do not know him.
This same Jesus then commanded John's obedience: "Write therefore the things
which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall take
place after these things" (1:19). The fact that we have the book of Revelation
is proof that John obeyed his Lord. Jesus commands our obedience as well, but
not without knowledge. Although we may not have experienced John's visions personally,
yet we have the written record which gives us the knowledge of Christ contained
there. We may not say: "Oh, I didn't realize that he is Lord of all the living!"
We must say: "Lord, what is it you have for me to do? Whatever it is, I'll do
it."
We conclude with a return to the vision of Christ exerting sovereign control
over his messengers and his churches: "As for the mystery of the seven stars
which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars
are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven
churches" (1:20). What a travesty for there to be anyone who knows the true
identity of Christ and does not fall at his feet in worship! Every believer
who reads these verses is led to a spiritual crisis: "If that is him, then I
must fall, or forfeit all!" There is no halfway response. Every aspect of life
must be brought into conformity with Christ's will and plan for us. Nothing
else does him justice, and nothing else can lead us into the true joy of the
fear of God.