THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST
SPREADING THE SOUL-SAVING MESSAGE OF JESUs
“Jesus in the Book of Revelation”
Introduction by narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST. Spreading the soul-saving message of Jesus. And now, Ben Bailey.
Jesus and His church will be victorious! This is the main idea from the Book of Revelation—the last book of the New Testament. In leading up to the Book of Revelation, we have learned Who Christ is. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John teach us about the nature of Christ. The Book of Acts tells a person how to become a Christian. Then, following Acts, in Romans through Jude, we are taught how to live the Christian life. The grand finale comes in the Book of Revelation where Christians are encouraged to know that Jesus and His followers will be victorious. Rome will not be victorious. World powers that rule today are not going to overrule God and His church. Rather, the church of the Lord and Jesus Christ will be victorious. The Book of Revelation paints for us a beautiful picture of victory, but it also paints for us a beautiful picture of Jesus Christ. There are scenes we find in the Book of Revelation that teach us much about the character and the nature of Jesus. I want to welcome you to our study, which examines Jesus in the Book of Revelation.
Jesus, as seen in Revelation, ought to encourage each one of us. We will especially notice His power, His kingship, His majesty, and His control over world events. This ought to encourage us by helping us to know that God still rules in the kingdoms of men, just as Daniel taught in the long ago. As we think about Jesus in the Book of Revelation, we are immediately impressed with the scene of Christ that is painted before John’s eyes. Notice Revelation 1:13-17, where the Bible says,
“In the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.’”
He is a great scene that impresses us once more with the power and majesty of Christ. He stand like the Son of Man, which emphasizes His nature. He had equality with God, yet at the same time He knows what we feel like. He has endured our temptations and our trials. As He stands there, He is girded with a golden band. His hear is like white wool—impressing upon our minds His perfect nature. His feet are as fine brass, refined in the furnace—showing that Jesus had been tested and tried, and that He had come out victorious after all that the devil had thrown at Him. Plus, Jesus had in His hands the seven stars, indicating that He was in control of the church and world events at that time. And Jesus has, coming out of His mouth, a sharp, two-edged sword. Hebrews 4:12 teaches us that the Word of God is living, powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword. Ephesians 6:17 also speaks to this as well. Jesus is seen standing as bright as the Sun. The voice of His mouth is like many waters. This overwhelming impression leaves us with no other conclusion except that Jesus is full of majesty and His power that we can barely begin to imagine.
How would this encourage suffering Christians in the first century. If we were in Rome, if we were Christians, and if there was a chance that we might die for the Cause of Christ. Or, if we were a part of the Lord’s body and we were wondering what was going to happen to the church, to be impressed with this magnificent vision would encourage us by helping us to know that Rome may be powerful, and Caesar may have some power, but neither one of them can begin to compare with the power and majesty of Jesus. Jesus is still in control, and what happens will happen because it is His will.
We then turn to Revelation 2 and 3, where Jesus addresses the seven churches of Asia. In each of these, He will say, “I know your works. He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says.” One of the things with which these congregations would be impressed would be that although Domitian or Nero was in power, Jesus is standing before each of these congregations, and they must give an account to Him—not to Rome or to Caesar, but to God! So, Revelation 2 and 3 teaches us that Jesus is still the Head of the church. Ephesians 1:22-23 tells us that He is the Head of the church, which is His body. In Matthew 28:18, we learn that Jesus has “all authority in heaven and on earth.” What we do in the church will not be judged by governmental authorities today, but will instead be judged by God. He knows what we do, and He knows our works. Five of these congregations needed to make changes in certain areas, and only two were offered a commendation. Five of these congregations needed to make changes, and Jesus knew that. He expected them to respond properly. The message for the church today is that God knows what we are doing. And He knows that if we are not following the Scriptures, we are going to have to give an account to Him. But for those churches that are following the Scriptures, this ought to be a great encouragement that Jesus cares, that He knows, and that He appreciates the good works that His congregations are doing.
In Revelation 5, we see a beautiful picture painted of the Lamb Who has been slain before the foundation of the world. In Revelation 5, John begins to weep because there is no one who can open the scroll and read it. But then in verses 5-7 we read,
“But one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.’ And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth.”
As Jesus begins to open the scroll, the congregation proclaims, “Worthy is the Lamb to perceive honor and glory and praise!” Because Jesus came into the world and died for sinful mankind, He is able to unloose the scroll of God’s wrath upon Rome and evildoers. This would be something that would encourage first-century Christians because they would know that Jesus, the One Who had died, was still living. He is in Heaven, and He is concerned about world events and His church—its survival and the fact that it must live in accordance with God’s will. As Christians, this should encourage each one of us as we think about the fact that Jesus so loved us that He would be willing to be slain for each one of us. Imagine the spotless, pure, innocent Lamb of God (Jn. 1:29). John the Immerser saw Jesus approaching, and he said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” That Lamb is before us, and Its throat has been cut. The Lamb has been slain. But the blood that flows from the Lamb is the blood that cleanses us from sin. Jesus’ sacrifice is held up in great glory here. And as a result, Jesus is able to take vengeance on those who do not follow the will of God.
In Revelation 6, we see that Jesus is presented as the Avenger of the saints. Some of the first-century Christians were suffering greatly at the hands of the Roman government. But notice what is said in Revelation 6:9:10—
“When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’”
Then the text tells us that a white robe was given to each one of them, and they were told to remain true and faithful, and that God would take care of it in His own time. Here were people who were truly converted and who were faithful to the Cause of Christ. They were so faithful that it was as if there was an altar, and their souls were under the altar, and they had been martyred and slain because they loved the Lord and His Cause. They were wondering what would happen, and they cried out, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” God said, “Take this white robe, put it on, and know that I am in control and that I will take care of this.” Those words ought to comfort Christians today. Sometimes, things happen in the world that we do not understand. Sometimes we may be motivated to look up to Heaven and cry out, “God, how long are You going to allow this to go on?” But we need to know that if we will be faithful, we, too, will have a white robe—which is representative of our obeying the Gospel and living the Christian life. That white robe is what is going to help us get into Heaven. But we also need to know that our God cares, that He knows what is going on, and He ultimately will avenge His saints. In 2 Thessalonians 1:8, we read that God will take “vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel.” The Bible teaches us in Romans 12:19 that we should not avenge ourselves. Rather, we should say that vengeance belongs to Lord. When someone does us wrong, we should not then turn to them and say, “Let me see how I can do you wrong also.” Or, “Let me see how I can get even with you.” Our world says, “Don’t get mad; get even!” Jesus says, “Don’t get mad or get even, but let Me get even for you.” Jesus is one day going to avenge the saints. We can know that He is concerned and that He does care.
In Revelation 7, we find a beautiful picture of Jesus as the loving Shepherd Who is going to lead His sheep to the water and food of everlasting life. Notice Revelation 7:16-17, where Jesus says, “They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Christians will not hunger or thirst. They will have Someone Who will lead them to living fountains of water. Jesus spoke of this in John 4:13-14 when He pointed out that He was that living fountain of water. He is the bread of life (Jn. 6:35). If we come to Jesus, we do not have to worry about hungering and thirsting. Those who are redeemed are not going to think about that. Jesus is going to take care of them. Notice the beautiful statement that God “will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” I can remember as a child that I would hurt my knee or something else would happen, and I would begin to cry. My mother or father would reach down with a handkerchief or the coattail of their shirt and tenderly and lovingly wipe away those tears. It wasn’t long after that until I was all right. That is the picture that is painted of Jesus. As our Shepherd, He takes care of our food and our water so that we do not have to worry about those things. And when bad things happen, He reaches down and wipes away our tears. That is the kind of Savior Whom we serve today. He is a loving Savior Who cares deeply for us, Who is taking care of us, and Who will not allow us to be harmed by world affairs.
Then, in Revelation 11 and 17 we see a picture painted of Jesus as the King of all kings. In Revelation 11:15, we are told about the kingdom of Christ. The Bible says, “Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’” Here we see Jesus’ kingdom as one that will overrule and outlast all others. He is the King of that kingdom. The United States of America is not in control. Heaven is still in control. Daniel 4 teaches that God still rules in the kingdoms of men today. We need to know that Jesus, the King of all kings, is the One Who is ultimately in charge. In fact, do you know who sets up and takes down world leaders? Romans 13 teaches that these leaders are servants of God who are at His disposal for His purposes. He ultimately will use them for His purpose. And when they are discarded, it will be because God has chosen it to be that way. We may not understand every purpose for having these leaders. We may not understand the full scheme of things and the way that God works them out. But we can know that God is still in charge today. In Revelation 17:14, we are told, “These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.” Jesus’ kingdom—the church—is the kingdom that is going to outlast all kingdoms. And, Jesus is still, of all lords, the greatest Lord. And of all kings, He is the Supreme King. God is still ruling in the kingdoms of men today. Jesus’ kingship is evident in Mark 9:1 when He said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power.” Who could said that but the King? Only the King could make a statement such as that. If Jesus is the King of all kings, that means that we need to get behind Him, follow Him, and allow Him to lead us to the victory that He has promised us. A lot of the problems that we face in life are due to the fact that we often do not fully submit to God’s will. Perhaps it is because we do not understand it. Perhaps it is because we do not really think that it is what it ought to be. Whatever the case may be, we need to know that we must live in submission to the will of God each and every day. If Jesus is the King, what does that make us? It makes us citizens of the kingdom. We are not in charge, and we are not the rulers. We need to allow Jesus to be in charge, and we need to get in line behind Jesus and follow Him because if we do that, Revelation 14 teaches that He will lead us to Heaven itself.
In Revelation 12, we see Jesus as the way to defeat Satan. How are we going to defeat Satan today and win the battle against this archenemy of the soul and of mankind? Revelation 12 tells us exactly how. The context is that there has been a war between Satan and the angels of God. A war has broken out in Heaven, which represents figuratively the war over man’s soul. Notice what Revelation 12:11 says. How did they overcome the devil? “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” Did you understand that? There is a three-fold way, giving in Revelation 12:11, for us to defeat Satan: Sacrifice, Scripture, and self-sacrifice. The sacrifice of Jesus is what you must have in your life. “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb.” The sacrifice of Jesus initially gives us salvation. Then there is the Scripture—“the word of their testimony.” What is the “word of their testimony”? It is the inspired Word of God that we have today. We overcome Satan by the sacrifice of Jesus, and we overcome Satan by the Scriptures. Isn’t that what Jesus did in Matthew 4? Jesus said three times, “It is written…,” “It is written…,” “It is written….” Jesus defeated Satan because He had a working knowledge of Scripture and could apply it to everyday situations. And, they overcame the devil by self-sacrifice. “They did not love their lives to the death.” If we are going to overcome Satan, we are going to have to be willing to sacrifice ourselves for the Cause of Christ. We are not talking about people becoming martyrs in the sense that some people try to do when they take a cross and nail themselves to it. That is not what we are talking about. By “self-sacrifice,” we mean that each and every day we are going to have to live our lives for the Cause of Christ. We are not going to live for Satan, for self, or for sin. Instead, we are going to live for Jesus and give our lives wholly to His Cause.
In Revelation 19, we are impressed with the victorious scene of Jesus the Christ. In Revelation 19, Jesus is seen as being victorious over all those in this world. It is a great scene of victory where Jesus overcomes and His people also overcome. Notice Revelation 19:1, “After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!” Verse 13 tells us that Jesus “was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.” Verse 15 says, “Out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron.” In verse 16, He is once again called “King of kings and Lord of lords.” In this chapter, as the Book of Revelation comes to a climax, Jesus is seen as the One Who is going to be victorious. Rome is not going to win. Domitian and Nero may have some governmental power, but ultimately they would fall and fail. But Jesus and His followers were going to have victory! Don’t you love the words of 1 John 5:4? “This is the victory we have, even our faith!” By faith in God and trust in His ability to help us and to lead us home to Heaven itself, we can have the victory. Why is that? It is because, as 1 John 4:4 points out, “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” God is the Supreme Being of the Universe. He is the One Who has all control and power. Satan cannot conquer God. In fact, in the Book of Job Satan was allowed to do only those things that God gave him power to do. In the Book of Revelation—chapters 20 and 21—Satan is bound, which shows that God still has control over him. God, His church, and His Son will be victorious in this life. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:57, “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Yes, we have the victory, and we are going to win. Jesus has already won the battle, hasn’t He? Hebrews 2:14 says that Jesus, “through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.” When Jesus died on the cross, he dealt the death blow to Satan that was prophesied in Genesis 3:15. And ever since that time, those who have died faithfully in Jesus have gained the victory. The victory is ours as Christians today. But in order for that victory to be ours, we must trust Jesus enough that even during the difficult times, and even during the times when we may not fully understand everything and things look bleak and dim, we still are able to trust God and know that He will see us through those times.
In Revelation 20, there is another impression of Jesus that is left upon our minds—Jesus the Great Judge of all mankind. Notice what Revelation 20:12-15 says,
“And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”
We know that Jesus is going to take part in that judgment. We know that it will be His word that judges us (Jn. 12:48; 2 Cor. 5:10). We are all going to appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ (Rom. 14:10). We need to know that Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords. He is going to be victorious. His church is going to be victorious. But we also need to know that, on that final day, if we have not been found faithful, we are going to have to stand before God and give an account of all those things in this life that we have not done correctly. As Paul put it in 2 Corinthians 5:10, “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” We need to realize that things that we think are secret—things that only we know about—God also knows. In Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, Solomon brought the book to a close by saying, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.” Even those things that we have done that we think no one else knows about, or things that we think we do not need to make right, God knows. And we will have to give account of those things. Hebrews 4:13 says, “There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” Proverbs 15:3 says, “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.”
So how does the Book of Revelation present Jesus to us? It presents Him as One Who has great majesty and power. It shows that He is still today the Head of the church. He is the Lamb Who was slain, and because of His great sacrifice He is able to avenge the saints of God. He also is seen as the King of kings and Lord of lords, Who, if we remain faithful to Him, will one day lead us to a home in Heaven. Jesus is the only Way by which we can defeat the devil and make sure that we stand pure at Judgment.
Are you a child of the Lord? Have you obeyed the Gospel? Are you a Christian? Is your view of Jesus and salvation in accord with what the New Testament teaches? If not, you can become a follower of Christ—a Christian—by obeying the Gospel. When, in Acts 16:30, the Philippian jailer asked, “What must I do to be saved?,” the answer was forthcoming and was quite simple. He was told that he needed to hear God’s Word. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. And not only did the jailer need to hear God’s Word, but he also needed to believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Jesus said in John 8:24, “If you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” In Acts 8:36, when the Ethiopian nobleman asked, “Here is water; what hinders me from being baptized?,” Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” He then baptized the nobleman because he did believe in Christ with all his heart. But a person must not only believe in Christ. He also must repent and make changes in his life. Acts 3:19 says, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.” A person also has to confess that Jesus is God’s Son and Savior of the world. Matthew 10:32-33 and Romans 10:10 teach that with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. And then a person must be baptized for the remission of sins. Revelation 1:5 says that Christ “washed us from our sins in His own blood.” When do we come into contact with the blood of the Lamb? We learn from the example of Saul’s conversion in Acts 22:16 that he was told to “Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins.” Saul came into contact with the soul-saving blood of Jesus at the point of baptism. You can do the same thing today. If you have never obeyed the Gospel, we want—more than anything—for you to become a Christian. It is our prayer today that your view of Jesus, and the way in which you live your life, will be patterned after the words of God as found in the Book of Revelation.
Narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
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1. The Book of Revelation paints a beautiful picture of something. What is that “something”?
2. How does Hebrews 4:12 depict the Word of God?
3. How does Ephesians 6:17 depict the Word of God?
4. Revelation 2 and 3 teach that Christ is still the Head of something. What is that “something”?
5. According to Matthew 28:18, what does Jesus possess?
6. According to Ephesians 1:22-23, of what is Jesus the Head?
7. What is the connection between the context of Revelation 5 and John 1:29?
8. How does Revelation 6 depict Christ?
9. According to 2 Thessalonians 1:8, what will God do at the end of time?
10. Romans 12:19 teaches us that we are not to avenge ourselves. Why is this the case?
11. What important point about the kingdom of God is contained in Mark 9:1?
12. How does Revelation 7 depict Christ?
13. How do Revelation 11 and 17 depict Christ?
14. According to Revelation 12:11, how do Christians overcome the devil?
15. When Christ was tempted by Satan in Matthew 4, what did He do to resist the devil?
16. How does Revelation 19 depict Christ?
17. What did John say (in 1 John 5:4) that would allow Christians to be victorious?
18. According to Revelation 19:16, what is Christ?
19. According to Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians 15:57, how do Christians overcome the world?
20. How does Revelation 20 depict Christ?
21. According to Solomon’s statement in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, what is man’s duty while on Earth?
22. What does Hebrews 4:13
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