[:en]SCRIPTURE: REVELATION 1
“I am the Alpha and the Omega” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was and who is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8)
“Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One. I was dead and behold I am alive forever and ever!. And I hold the keys of death and hades” (Revelation 1:18)
The Book of Revelation was written by John after the reign of Roman emperor Nero. When Domitian became the emperor, he intensified the persecution of Christians. He promoted “emperor worship” and commanded people to address him as “Lord and God”. He exiled John as a prisoner to Isle of Patmos, a rocky island in the Aegean Sea. There was a penal camp there where the prisoners labored in the mines. It was at this place where John received visions from the Lord when he wrote Revelations in AD95. Revelation is the climax of the Bible, the fulfillment of what God had started in Genesis. It reveals who Jesus Christ is and what He has done. Jesus is the faithful witness, the first born from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth (v. 5). He is the Apha and the Omega, who is, and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (v. 8)
God commanded John to write on a scroll what he saw and sent it to the seven churches – Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.
John saw 7 golden lampstands and the glorified Christ with the following descriptions:
- He dressed in long robe reaching down to His FEET (v. 13a)
- There is a golden sash around His CHEST (v. 13b)
- His HEAD and HAIR were white like wool, as white as snow (v. 14)
- His FEET were like bronze glowing in a furnace (v. 15a)
- His VOICE was like the sound of rushing waters (v. 15b)
- He held 7 stars at His RIGHT HAND (v. 16a)
- Out of His MOUTH came a sharp double-edged sword (v. 16b)
- His FACE was like the sun shining in all its brilliance (v. 16c)
When John saw Him, he was frightened to death. But God told him not to be afraid because He had already conquered death. God told John to write down what he saw. The 7 stars represent the angels of the 7 churches and the 7 golden lampstands represent the 7 churches.
SUMMARY:
Jesus Christ is the faithful witness, the first born from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth. He loved us and freed us from our sins by His blood and made us to be a kingdom and priest to serve His Father (v. 5-6). He is the Alpha and the Omega, who is and who was and who is to come” (v. 8)
Christ selected 7 churches out of many in Asia Minor to illustrate the spiritual conditions of the churches. All the conditions are present in the churches of today.
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