Revelation 1:4-6: Jesus, the Son of God

Introduction

At long last, welcome back to our study of the Book of Revelation!  Just a few quick points of review regarding part one before we launch into part two of our study.

The Book of Revelation is part of the Bible, which is the Word of God, which He gave to mankind through divine inspiration using human writers.  The position of this study is that the Word of God is inerrant in its original form, and that its various copies and translations throughout the centuries have been transcribed as accurately as possible, with minimal discrepancies, and that the integrity of it has been maintained by the Holy Spirit.  We have many original texts in museums, which have been compared to historic copies and to modern translations and have verified their accuracy.

It is also the position of this study that the primary meaning of Scripture is the most obvious meaning; in other words, the simplest understanding of the text is the most important.  Poetry should be read as poetry, song should be read as song, prophecy should be read as prophecy, law should be read as law, and prose should be read as prose.  This is not to say that there aren’t additional meanings in the text.  God is a God of wonders, beyond our complete ability to comprehend; it would make sense that His Word would be equally complex.  However, He wants us to understand Him, and as a general rule for interpretation, the simplest, clearest meaning is most often the best interpretation.  Also, whenever possible, we should let Scripture interpret Scripture.  The Bible repeats itself, explains itself, and corroborates itself throughout both Testaments.  Apparent contradictions are revealed not to be contradictions after deeper study and investigation.  For the person who has an honest and open mind, not hindered by prejudice and preconceptions, the Bible is the most astounding piece of literature ever produced by mankind; written over thousands of years by dozens of people, yet without contradiction or fallacy.  And why not?  After all, it is inspired by the God of creation!

Finally, in reviewing chapter 1, verses 1-3 from last time, we see that first and foremost, the Book of Revelation is about Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, and God incarnate (in human flesh).  Secondarily, it is a book of prophecy, both in terms of forth telling the words of God to humanity, and foretelling the future from the perspective of its human author, John the Apostle.  Thirdly, the word “revelation” comes from the Greek word “apokalypsis” which means “unveiling.”  The first three verses of the book tell us that the message of the book is an unveiling, or revealing, of Jesus Christ, which God the Father gave to Jesus to give to His servant John.

As a side note here, why would God the Father reveal something to God the Son?  Wouldn’t God the Son, being God, already know all things?  Yes and no.  It is part of the mystery of the deity (divinity/Godhood) of Jesus and the mystery of the nature of the Trinity (one God in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).  These are great Biblical truths and truths of reality that we can’t fully grasp, currently.  Given the nature of this study, I can’t and won’t try to explain these concepts here, but keep the following verses from the Gospels in mind: Luke 2:52 and Matthew 24:36.  The Luke passage states, “And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”  And the Matthew passage states, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.”  (Jesus was speaking here to His disciples regarding the time of His second coming.)  Why would Jesus, being the Son of God and being fully God Himself as the second person of the Trinity, grow in wisdom and favor?  And why would He not know the time of His return?  Because, in addition to being God, He was also fully man!  This is the truth and the mystery of the incarnation.  And being a human, He learned as humans do, and grew in wisdom and knowledge, as well as experiencing physical growth and maturity.  He also was lead during His life (as pointed out numerous times in the Gospels) by the Father and the Holy Spirit.  For whatever reason, which we do not fully know or understand, some of the information related to His second advent (coming) were not revealed to Him fully during the time of His first advent here on Earth.  All very interesting.

Now it’s time to move on in our study…

Revelation 1:4-6

            “John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,

            and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.  To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood—

and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever.  Amen.”

            We know from last time that John is the Apostle John, one of the twelve original disciples of Jesus.  This John is the same author of the Gospel of John and the three Epistles of John.  The seven churches he mentions here we will see mentioned by name later.  What is important here is that we will see this number, seven, repeated many times throughout Revelation.  The number seven is understood by Biblical scholars as representing completion.  So these seven churches, while certainly not being the only churches in Asia at the end of the first century, are representative of the complete church (all members of Christ’s body or the Christian fellowship).  We will talk more later about these seven churches specifically, and other aspects of their importance, later.

            In his salutation, John says, “grace to you and peace.”  Saying “grace” was a typical Greek greeting at this time, and saying “peace” was a typical Hebrew greeting.  So here, John is greeting both gentile and Jewish Christians—this greeting was all encompassing for the Church.

            “From Him who is and who was and who is to come” is a reference to God (referencing His eternal nature), and specifically here to God the Father.  “From the seven Spirits who are before His [the Father’s] throne” is a reference to the Holy Spirit.  This reference is from the Old Testament, specifically Isaiah 11:2, which describes the seven-fold ministry of the Holy Spirit.  Next we see “and from Jesus Christ” with Jesus, of course, being the Son of God, or God the Son.  So we see here a reference to the Trinity or triune nature of God.  This is one of the major doctrines of Biblical Christianity, and is far too broad a subject to tackle in this context.  Suffice it to say, we see all three persons of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, being mentioned here.

            “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness” is an interesting phrase.  What is Jesus a witness of?  In John 14:9 (the Gospel of John), Jesus says, “He who has seen me has seen the Father.”  Among other things, Jesus is primarily a witness of or to God the Father.  Also, the Greek word here for “witness” is “martus” which is also the root word for “martyr.”  The word “martyr” is defined by Merriam-Webster online as “a person who is killed or who suffers greatly for a religion, cause, etc;” in other words, a person who suffers greatly from something.  Jesus certainly met the definition of a martyr on the cross.

            “The firstborn of the dead” is a phrase that needs some explanation.  Biblically speaking, Jesus was not the first person to be physically resurrected from the dead.  Both the Old Testament prophets, Elijah and Elisha, had raised people from the dead.  Jesus had raised others from the dead Himself, like Lazarus for example.  This term “firstborn” or literally “first begotten” speaks to a place of priority more than chronology.  The same term “firstborn” is used describing Jesus as “the firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15).  He certainly wasn’t the first human to be born, as that was Cain, the first child of Adam and Eve.  But Jesus is the most important human ever born, and certainly takes a place of precedence, or priority, over all creation.  In speaking of the Messiah (who we know is Jesus), King David said, “The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’” (Psalm 110:1)  And in speaking of Jesus, Colossians 1:16-17 state, “…all things have been created through Him and for Him.  He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

Regarding Jesus, the term “begotten” is also used in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”  It is also used in John 1:14: “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”  And it is used in John 1:18: “No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.”  Wow!  These verses are packed with meaning.  First of all, “the Word” is a title of Jesus.  In these passages the English word “Word” is the Greek word “Logos” which is used many times in the New Testament as a title of Jesus.  These verses tell us that the person of Jesus became flesh (the incarnation), therefore He existed prior to His conception and birth (as the second person of the Godhead).  We also see that Jesus is clearly identified here as God.  He is “the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father [God].”  But let’s explore this term begotten in more detail.  For our purposes here, in all three of these verses, Jesus is called “the only begotten.”

How is He begotten?  Did God the Father have physical relations with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and thereby create Jesus?  No, absolutely not.  Jesus, as the second person of the Trinity, is not a created being, but was present at the creation and was active in the work of it (see Colossians 1:16 above and John 1:1-3).  Also, we know “God is spirit” (John 4:24).  Also, we know Mary was a virgin when Jesus was miraculously conceived and born (Matthew 1:25, Luke 1:34-35).

Is Jesus the only child of God?  Deuteronomy 14:1 states, in speaking of the nation of Israel, “‘You are the sons of the Lord your God;’”  Hosea 1:10 states, also in speaking of the nation of Israel, “‘You are the sons of the living God.’”  In speaking of the Church (Christians), Galatians 3:26 states, “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”  In speaking of all who believe in Jesus as the Christ, John 1:12 states, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”  The terms “sons of God” and “children of God” is used throughout the scripture as a symbolic reference to the special relationship between God and His people of all historical ages, or dispensations.  Jesus certainly has a special relationship with God, both in terms of the Man Jesus with His God, and the second person of the trinity (the Son) with the first (the Father).  Among other things, the term “only begotten” is speaking to the preeminence of Jesus over all else.  It speaks to His priority in the order of things.

When Revelation 1:5 speaks of Jesus as “the firstborn of the dead,” not only is it placing Jesus in His proper position of preeminence, but it is also referencing a concept from 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.  This will take us into the subject of soteriology a little, which is the study of the doctrine of salvation.  1 Corinthians 15:20-23 states, “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.  For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.  For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.  But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming,”  It is only because of Jesus resurrection that the redeemed have the hope of resurrection after death too.  The resurrection of the dead in Christ (the redeemed) is called “the first resurrection.”  This is an event we will encounter later in the Book of Revelation.  Of that event, the first resurrection, Christ Jesus is the first fruits, meaning He is the very first human to take part in the first resurrection.  Prior to Jesus’ resurrection, all those who were ever brought back to life eventually died again.  Jesus was the first to be raised from death in a glorified, immortal state.  Therefore, He is the first fruits of the first resurrection, or in other words, the firstborn of the dead.

Getting back to the text, verse 5 goes on to refer to Jesus as “the ruler of the kings of the earth.”  Jesus is identified throughout Scripture as the coming King.  The prophesied messiah of the Jewish people was to be the King of Israel.  Not only that, but the messiah’s kingdom was prophesied to have global dominion; the future King of Israel was prophesied to rule the world from Jerusalem.  Jesus, the Christ, is the messiah of Israel.  He will return one day and establish His kingdom over the Earth.  We will see that later in this book as well.  Jesus is the King of Kings.

The next part of verse 5 begins a praise of Jesus that continues into verse 6: “To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood… to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever.  Amen.”  John, who has been nicknamed the beloved apostle, focuses much of His earlier new testament writings, the Gospel of John and the three Epistles of John, on the love of God, the love of Jesus, and the love Christians should have for one another and for the lost world.  It only makes sense that he would combine here a statement of salvation through Jesus’ finished work on the cross with Jesus’ love for us.  He then praises Jesus by proclaiming glory and dominion to Him for all eternity.  Much of what we will see in the coming chapters will reveal Jesus in His glorified state, a position He occupies now, and will reveal the practical establishment of His dominion over all.

In between these two lines is an insertion: “—and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—”  Here John is referencing a concept mentioned other places in the New Testament; a concept which he will discuss in more detail later in this writing.  It is the concept that the future destiny of the Church, the Bride of Christ, is to be a kingdom of priests.  We are to be kings and priests with Jesus in His kingdom.  This is part of ecclesiology, or the study of the doctrine of the Church; referred to at times in the Bible as the “mystery” of God, or one of them at least.  We will explore this more when we come to John’s later writings about it in the Book of Revelation.

Much more could be said about all these things, but I will stop here for now.

Application

            How do we apply this passage to our lives here and now?  Well, if you believe these things, and know Jesus as your savior, then you have much to rejoice about and much to look forward to.  Your Lord and Savior is victorious and has defeated sin and death, and will return one day to establish a very real kingdom on earth.  And you have a destiny to be part of it.  So be encouraged, as this life is not as good as it gets.

If you don’t know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then you have a decision to make.  You can reject this message as myth, fantasy, or one religion among many that are equally valid and useful to the weak as a crutch for dealing with life, and useful to the powerful as a method for control.  You can ignore it for now, and postpone making a decision.  But be warned, Jesus will return some day and we know not when, but when He does, it will be too late to make a decision; the time to decide is now.  Or, you can decide to accept Jesus as your savior, and receive salvation from God from your sins and from the consequences that come with rejecting God.  All you need to do is ask Jesus and He has promised He will answer.  God has promised He will not turn away any who call upon Jesus for salvation.

If you claim to believe in God, then I challenge you to take His Word seriously.  If you claim to believe in the Bible, then realize this is part of the package.  It isn’t our privilege to decide to follow the parts we like and ignore the parts that make us uncomfortable.  If you are a child of God already, then be encouraged.  Peace to you all.