I read a note my Grandma wrote back in 1923
Grandpa kept it in his coat, and he showed it once to me
He said, “Boy, you might not understand, but a long, long time ago,
Grandma’s daddy didn’t like me none, but I love your Grandma so.

We had this crazy plan to meet and run away together
Get married in the first town we came to and live forever
But nailed to the tree where we were supposed to meet instead
I found this letter, and this is what it said,

“If you get there before I do
Don’t give up on me
I’ll meet you when my chores are through
I don’t know how long I’ll be
But I’m not gonna let you down
Darling wait and see
And between now and then
Til I see you again
I’ll be loving yo
Love, Me.”

Like the boy in this song, you can learn a lot about someone from reading one of their love letters. The Book of Revelation is Jesus’ love letter to his church, sent through his messenger, the Apostle John, and we can learn a lot about Jesus by reading it.

In Revelation 1:9-20, John continues the introduction of this love letter by explaining the circumstances in which he received this Divine Revelation from Jesus. This section teaches us some things about Jesus and his relationship with the church. So, let us listen in on this ancient love letter; it has some profound implications for us today!

1.) Relationships in the Church (9)

The Family of God

The first implication is found in verse 9, where John refers to himself as a “brother” and “companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus.” The fact that he identifies himself as a “brother” highlights the nature of the church as the family of God. Even though the Apostle John did not have any biological family relationships with anyone in these seven churches, they had all been adopted into the same spiritual family through their mutual faith in Jesus Christ.

One of the terms the New Testament uses to describe salvation is adoption. In Ephesians 1:5-6, Paul writes, “In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” When someone receives Jesus Christ as Lord, they are adopted into God’s family and God becomes their father and other believers become brothers and sisters.

Contrary to common belief and cliché, we are not “all God’s Children.” Over and over again I have heard people refer to humanity in general as God’s children, but this is simply not true. Although the Bible affirms that God is the creator of everyone, he is not everyone’s father. This term is reserved for those who have put their faith in his son! When one becomes a Christian, they gain a wonderful heavenly father and millions of brothers and sisters in Christ.

A good way to think about the church as the family of God is: your local church is your immediate family, and the worldwide universal church is your extended family. You see your immediate family more often and relationships tend to be closer, but you also share mutual love and support with your extended family. Families love, care, serve, and sacrifice for one another.

Have you been adopted into the family of God? Is God your father? How are your relationships with your brothers and sisters in the church?

Companions in Suffering

John also refers to himself as their “companion in the suffering…” The churches in the province of Asia, to whom the Book of Revelation was specifically addressed, were suffering severe persecution from the Roman Empire; he too, was suffering exile on the island of Patmos because of his faithful testimony to the gospel of Jesus Christ. John identifies himself as their companion to encourage them to remain faithful to Christ. He links these terms together to remind them that faithful endurance through tribulation is the means by which one reigns with Jesus. Christians conquer by refusing to compromise their faithful witness in the face of trials, in overcoming the temptations of evil, in defeating sin in their lives, and beginning to rule over death and Satan by identifying with Christ.

John’s words to the churches remind us that we too are companions in suffering. When we are suffering, it is a great comfort to know that we are not suffering alone—that there are others who have already been through what we are going through and that there are others who are currently dealing with what we are dealing with right now. We identify with the sufferings of Christ when we suffer and support others through their sufferings. We reign with Christ when we endure hardship, resist temptation, and overcome evil together. We gain the eternal glory of Christ when we persevere through suffering now.

Have you ever had a companion in suffering—someone who has encouraged, supported, and held you accountable? Are you willing to be a companion in someone else’s suffering? Will you encourage, support, and hold them accountable? In the church, we are brothers and sisters and companions in suffering!

2.) Worship in the Church (10a)

The Lord’s Day

As John begins to describe his supernatural vision, he includes two details that reveal the context in which he received it: worship. He says that it took place on the “Lord’s Day” and he was “in the Spirit.” The Lord’s Day is surely a reference to the first day of the week, Sunday. The Jewish Sabbath, a day reserved for rest and worship, was always observed on Saturday, to commemorate God resting on the seventh day of creation, but the early Christian church changed its day of worship to Sunday to distinguish itself from Judaism and to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. By the time of John’s writing, it was an established practice for Christians to gather for worship on Sunday.

This is why the vast majority of Christian churches worship on Sunday mornings today. Every time we gather for worship we remember that Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday morning. Now I want to be clear: there is no biblical mandate that says that the church has to worship on Sunday mornings, but this is certainly the precedent that has been set since the early days of the church.

Every once in a while, someone asks me why we have church on Sunday morning rather than Saturday evening. I usually tell them that I like to test people’s allegiance to Christ by how early they can wake up on Sunday morning, besides worship on Saturday evenings would conflict with family dinners, fishing, deer hunting, golf matches, NFL football, and hockey practice. I certainly wouldn’t want to inconvenience anyone by changing worship to Saturday evenings, so I guess we will keep it on Sunday morning, and continue to remember Jesus’ resurrection!

In the Spirit

John also tells us that he was “in the Spirit” when he received this vision of Christ. This means that John had an ecstatic experience whereby the Holy Spirit supernaturally took over his senses and gave him a divine vision. This is similar to the typical prophetic experience in the Old Testament where the Holy Spirit would come upon a person and enable them to either see or do something that they ordinarily couldn’t see or do. These experiences continued into New Testament times, as we see when the Apostle Paul was caught up to the third heaven (2 Cor. 12) and they happened throughout the history of the Christian church and they still occur today.

These experiences have always been rare and they are only temporary. Not everyone should expect to have an experience like this and even if you do, you should not expect it to last forever. Sometimes they happen in the context of worship, as with John here, and sometimes they happen in other places. When God gives someone an experience like this, he always has a specific purpose for it: a conversion encounter, a word of encouragement, a command to do something, a revealing of a life calling, etc.

Have you ever had an “in the Spirit” experience? If so, be thankful that God revealed himself to you in this way. If you haven’t, don’t be discouraged. God doesn’t intend to give everyone an experience like this. Whatever you do, don’t think that there is anything you can do to manufacture an experience like this. Some people think that if you have a certain order of worship or style of music or if you just pray hard enough, you can force yourself to be in the Spirit, but this is not the case. Only God can give people an experience like this.

3.) Sovereignty over the Church (10b-20)

Now that the context is set, John describes his vision of the glorified Christ in vivid detail which affirms Jesus’ sovereignty over his church. A reminder of Jesus’ sovereignty would serve as a great encouragement to a church that was enduring severe persecution.

He begins by saying that the vision was auditory before it is visionary. The loud voice being compared to the sound of a trumpet is significant. Throughout the Old Testament, trumpets were used to introduce the presence of royalty. Trumpets sounded before a king would speak. Here, the loud voice compared to a trumpet shows that the King Jesus has just entered the scene and is about to speak, thus asserting his sovereignty. In verse 11, Jesus makes divine declaration to his servant John to write down on a scroll everything he is about to see and send it to the seven churches and he announces them by name.

As John heard the voice, he turned around to see the one speaking to him and he saw one who looked like a son of man standing among seven golden lampstands. The title “son of man” identifies the person as Jesus. This title was proclaimed as a messianic prophecy in the book of Daniel and it was Jesus’ preferred way of referring to himself throughout the gospels. The lampstands in view here were ancient Jewish menorahs. Verse 20 tells us that these lampstands represent the seven churches. The churches are depicted as shining lights for God in the midst of a dark and hostile world, and that the one who looked like “a son of man” was standing among them represents Jesus’ very presence among his churches.

The image of the robe and the sash portrays Jesus’ role as the great high priest. The white hair on his head pictures his divine dignity and eternal wisdom. The eyes blazing with fire represents his omniscience—that is, his ability to see everything. The bronze feet represent his glory and strength. The voice like rushing waters describes his great power. The stars in his right hand picture his power and authority and the two-edged sword coming out of his mouth is a symbol for his judgment. His radiant face sums up all of the others and declares Jesus’ sovereignty and glory.

When John saw this incredible image of the glorified Christ, what else could he do but fall to his feet in humility and worship? Then Jesus comforted him by placing his right on him and telling him not to be afraid. Jesus’ sovereignty has already been revealed by the image, and now he declares his own sovereignty with his words. By saying that he is the first and the last, he is asserting his sovereignty over time. He is eternal—he has no beginning or end, he has always been and always will be! By saying that he is the living one who died and is alive forever and ever, he declares his sovereignty over life and death. By saying that he holds the keys of death and Hades, he declares his sovereignty over sin and the punishment for sin. He is the judge of the universe.

The immediate vision of the glorified Christ comes to an end by Jesus explaining the mystery of the lampstands and stars. He says that the lampstands represent the churches and the stars represent the angels of the churches. Thus, Jesus declares his sovereignty over angels and his church!

John’s message of the vision of Jesus’ sovereignty would have served as an incredible comfort and encouragement to these seven churches that were experiencing persecution and hardship. And so, this vision of Jesus’ sovereignty over the world, over our church, and over our individual lives is a great comfort to us today too. We need to be reminded that Jesus is the sovereign King of Kings and Lord of Lords. When our lives seem so chaotic, we need to be reminded that Jesus is in control. When we are guilty of sin, we need to remember that Jesus is our Great High Priest who offers us forgiveness! When we are victims of evil, we need to be reminded that Jesus is the Judge! When we are weak, we need to be reminded that he has a rushing voice of power! When we are tempted to sin, we need to be reminded that Jesus’ blazing eyes see everything. When we are sick and close to death, we must remember that Jesus’ hands hold the keys to death and Hades!

No matter what difficulty, hardship, persecution, trial, or tribulation we face in this life, we must remember that he’s got the whole world in his hands—he’s got the whole church in his hands—he’s got the little bitty baby, he’s got you and me brother, he’s got you and me sister, he’s got the whole world in his hands!

 

            Like the boy in this song, you can learn a lot about someone from reading one of their love letters. The Book of Revelation is Jesus’ love letter to his church, sent through his messenger, the Apostle John, and we can learn a lot about Jesus by reading it.   

            In Revelation 1:9-20, John continues the introduction of this love letter by explaining the circumstances in which he received this Divine Revelation from Jesus. This section teaches us some things about Jesus and his relationship with the church. So, let us listen in on this ancient love letter; it has some profound implications for us today!

 

1.) Relationships in the Church (9)

The Family of God

            The first implication is found in verse 9, where John refers to himself as a “brother” and “companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus.” The fact that he identifies himself as a “brother” highlights the nature of the church as the family of God. Even though the Apostle John did not have any biological family relationships with anyone in these seven churches, they had all been adopted into the same spiritual family through their mutual faith in Jesus Christ.

            One of the terms the New Testament uses to describe salvation is adoption. In Ephesians 1:5-6, Paul writes, “In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” When someone receives Jesus Christ as Lord, they are adopted into God’s family and God becomes their father and other believers become brothers and sisters.

            Contrary to common belief and cliché, we are not “all God’s Children.” Over and over again I have heard people refer to humanity in general as God’s children, but this is simply not true. Although the Bible affirms that God is the creator of everyone, he is not everyone’s father. This term is reserved for those who have put their faith in his son! When one becomes a Christian, they gain a wonderful heavenly father and millions of brothers and sisters in Christ.

            A good way to think about the church as the family of God is: your local church is your immediate family, and the worldwide universal church is your extended family. You see your immediate family more often and relationships tend to be closer, but you also share mutual love and support with your extended family. Families love, care, serve, and sacrifice for one another.

            Have you been adopted into the family of God? Is God your father? How are your relationships with your brothers and sisters in the church?

 

Companions in Suffering

            John also refers to himself as their “companion in the suffering…” The churches in the province of Asia, to whom the Book of Revelation was specifically addressed, were suffering severe persecution from the Roman Empire; he too, was suffering exile on the island of Patmos because of his faithful testimony to the gospel of Jesus Christ. John identifies himself as their companion to encourage them to remain faithful to Christ. He links these terms together to remind them that faithful endurance through tribulation is the means by which one reigns with Jesus. Christians conquer by refusing to compromise their faithful witness in the face of trials, in overcoming the temptations of evil, in defeating sin in their lives, and beginning to rule over death and Satan by identifying with Christ.

            John’s words to the churches remind us that we too are companions in suffering. When we are suffering, it is a great comfort to know that we are not suffering alone—that there are others who have already been through what we are going through and that there are others who are currently dealing with what we are dealing with right now. We identify with the sufferings of Christ when we suffer and support others through their sufferings. We reign with Christ when we endure hardship, resist temptation, and overcome evil together. We gain the eternal glory of Christ when we persevere through suffering now.

            Have you ever had a companion in suffering—someone who has encouraged, supported, and held you accountable? Are you willing to be a companion in someone else’s suffering? Will you encourage, support, and hold them accountable? In the church, we are brothers and sisters and companions in suffering!  

 

2.) Worship in the Church (10a)

The Lord’s Day

            As John begins to describe his supernatural vision, he includes two details that reveal the context in which he received it: worship. He says that it took place on the “Lord’s Day” and he was “in the Spirit.” The Lord’s Day is surely a reference to the first day of the week, Sunday. The Jewish Sabbath, a day reserved for rest and worship, was always observed on Saturday, to commemorate God resting on the seventh day of creation, but the early Christian church changed its day of worship to Sunday to distinguish itself from Judaism and to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. By the time of John’s writing, it was an established practice for Christians to gather for worship on Sunday.

            This is why the vast majority of Christian churches worship on Sunday mornings today. Every time we gather for worship we remember that Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday morning. Now I want to be clear: there is no biblical mandate that says that the church has to worship on Sunday mornings, but this is certainly the precedent that has been set since the early days of the church.

            Every once in a while, someone asks me why we have church on Sunday morning rather than Saturday evening. I usually tell them that I like to test people’s allegiance to Christ by how early they can wake up on Sunday morning, besides worship on Saturday evenings would conflict with family dinners, fishing, deer hunting, golf matches, NFL football, and hockey practice. I certainly wouldn’t want to inconvenience anyone by changing worship to Saturday evenings, so I guess we will keep it on Sunday morning, and continue to remember Jesus’ resurrection!     

 

In the Spirit

            John also tells us that he was “in the Spirit” when he received this vision of Christ. This means that John had an ecstatic experience whereby the Holy Spirit supernaturally took over his senses and gave him a divine vision. This is similar to the typical prophetic experience in the Old Testament where the Holy Spirit would come upon a person and enable them to either see or do something that they ordinarily couldn’t see or do. These experiences continued into New Testament times, as we see when the Apostle Paul was caught up to the third heaven (2 Cor. 12) and they happened throughout the history of the Christian church and they still occur today.

            These experiences have always been rare and they are only temporary. Not everyone should expect to have an experience like this and even if you do, you should not expect it to last forever. Sometimes they happen in the context of worship, as with John here, and sometimes they happen in other places. When God gives someone an experience like this, he always has a specific purpose for it: a conversion encounter, a word of encouragement, a command to do something, a revealing of a life calling, etc.

            Have you ever had an “in the Spirit” experience? If so, be thankful that God revealed himself to you in this way. If you haven’t, don’t be discouraged. God doesn’t intend to give everyone an experience like this. Whatever you do, don’t think that there is anything you can do to manufacture an experience like this. Some people think that if you have a certain order of worship or style of music or if you just pray hard enough, you can force yourself to be in the Spirit, but this is not the case. Only God can give people an experience like this.

 

3.) Sovereignty over the Church (10b-20)

            Now that the context is set, John describes his vision of the glorified Christ in vivid detail which affirms Jesus’ sovereignty over his church. A reminder of Jesus’ sovereignty would serve as a great encouragement to a church that was enduring severe persecution.

            He begins by saying that the vision was auditory before it is visionary. The loud voice being compared to the sound of a trumpet is significant. Throughout the Old Testament, trumpets were used to introduce the presence of royalty. Trumpets sounded before a king would speak. Here, the loud voice compared to a trumpet shows that the King Jesus has just entered the scene and is about to speak, thus asserting his sovereignty. In verse 11, Jesus makes divine declaration to his servant John to write down on a scroll everything he is about to see and send it to the seven churches and he announces them by name.

            As John heard the voice, he turned around to see the one speaking to him and he saw one who looked like a son of man standing among seven golden lampstands. The title “son of man” identifies the person as Jesus. This title was proclaimed as a messianic prophecy in the book of Daniel and it was Jesus’ preferred way of referring to himself throughout the gospels. The lampstands in view here were ancient Jewish menorahs. Verse 20 tells us that these lampstands represent the seven churches. The churches are depicted as shining lights for God in the midst of a dark and hostile world, and that the one who looked like “a son of man” was standing among them represents Jesus’ very presence among his churches.

            The image of the robe and the sash portrays Jesus’ role as the great high priest. The white hair on his head pictures his divine dignity and eternal wisdom. The eyes blazing with fire represents his omniscience—that is, his ability to see everything. The bronze feet represent his glory and strength. The voice like rushing waters describes his great power. The stars in his right hand picture his power and authority and the two-edged sword coming out of his mouth is a symbol for his judgment. His radiant face sums up all of the others and declares Jesus’ sovereignty and glory.

            When John saw this incredible image of the glorified Christ, what else could he do but fall to his feet in humility and worship? Then Jesus comforted him by placing his right on him and telling him not to be afraid. Jesus’ sovereignty has already been revealed by the image, and now he declares his own sovereignty with his words. By saying that he is the first and the last, he is asserting his sovereignty over time. He is eternal—he has no beginning or end, he has always been and always will be! By saying that he is the living one who died and is alive forever and ever, he declares his sovereignty over life and death. By saying that he holds the keys of death and Hades, he declares his sovereignty over sin and the punishment for sin. He is the judge of the universe.

            The immediate vision of the glorified Christ comes to an end by Jesus explaining the mystery of the lampstands and stars. He says that the lampstands represent the churches and the stars represent the angels of the churches. Thus, Jesus declares his sovereignty over angels and his church!

            John’s message of the vision of Jesus’ sovereignty would have served as an incredible comfort and encouragement to these seven churches that were experiencing persecution and hardship. And so, this vision of Jesus’ sovereignty over the world, over our church, and over our individual lives is a great comfort to us today too. We need to be reminded that Jesus is the sovereign King of Kings and Lord of Lords. When our lives seem so chaotic, we need to be reminded that Jesus is in control. When we are guilty of sin, we need to remember that Jesus is our Great High Priest who offers us forgiveness! When we are victims of evil, we need to be reminded that Jesus is the Judge! When we are weak, we need to be reminded that he has a rushing voice of power! When we are tempted to sin, we need to be reminded that Jesus’ blazing eyes see everything. When we are sick and close to death, we must remember that Jesus’ hands hold the keys to death and Hades!

            No matter what difficulty, hardship, persecution, trial, or tribulation we face in this life, we must remember that he’s got the whole world in his hands—he’s got the whole church in his hands—he’s got the little bitty baby, he’s got you and me brother, he’s got you and me sister, he’s got the whole world in his hands!