Revelation: Unveiling Reality “Vision of the Resurrected...
Transcript of Revelation: Unveiling Reality “Vision of the Resurrected...
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Revelation: Unveiling Reality “Vision of the Resurrected and Ascended Jesus” Revelation 1 Kevin Haah
March 27, 2016
Turn on Timer!
Happy Resurrection Day! He is risen!!
[Slide 1] Today, I am going to be sharing an Easter message from a unique angle
from the Book of Revelation. I don’t think I ever heard of an Easter sermon from the
Book of Revelation. Anyway, we are going to be doing that today as we kick-off a new
series entitled, “Revelation: Unveiling Reality.” This is going to our major series for
the year. So, that means we are really going to spend some time digging into this. I
know that a lot of people make Revelation into a crystal ball for the future, and speculate
on who the anti-Christ is, whether so and so is the beast. It’s not about that. Revelation
was written to the churches that were being persecuted, it was written to people who felt
like God was far away, to people who felt like God was not answering their prayers. It
was written to tell them, and to tell us, that reality is more than what we see with our
eyes. The word revelation is Greek translation of the word, Apocalypse, which means
unveiling. This book is about unveiling reality that we don’t see in midst of hardship. It
is an unveiling not just the future, what is to come, but also the present, what is going on
now, SO THAT we can find comfort in God, SO THAT we can rest in God, SO THAT
we can continue to be faithful to God even in midst of hardship, SO THAT we can
overcome. So, this book is radically important to us. We can’t ignore it.
Today, I want to go straight to the first vision that the writer, Apostle John, has of
Jesus, because today is Easter. We will go back to the introduction to the letter next
week. Have you ever wondered what Jesus is doing now? What does he look now after
the resurrection and ascension? Well, we are going to find out through the vision that
John had of Jesus. So, title of the sermon today is [Slide 3] “Vision of the Resurrected
and Ascended Jesus.” Today’s sermon closely tracks the actually text of the passage.
So, I want to encourage you to open your Bible or smartphone to the text and follow me
throughout the sermon.
We are going to start from Revelation 1:9-20:
[Slide 4] 9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and
patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of
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the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the
Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 which said: “Write on
a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna,
Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”
[Slide 5] 12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I
turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and among the lampstands was someone
like a son of man, u dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden
sash around his chest. 14 The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as
snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire.
[Slide 6] 15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like
the sound of rushing waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming
out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun
shining in all its brilliance.
[Slide 7] 17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his
right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am
the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I
hold the keys of death and Hades.
[Slide 8] 19 “Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take
place later. 20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of
the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven
churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
[Slide 9] I. Suffering of the Church
John introduces himself as “your brother and companion in the suffering and
kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus.” In order to understand what he
means we have to look at the historic context. It’s now about AD 96. John, the beloved
disciple of Jesus is really old, probably in his 80s. He is exiled in an island called Patmos
because of his loyalty to Jesus. Patmos was a prisoner’s island. Life was hard for the
followers of Jesus. In AD 67, Emperor Nero was feeding Christians to lions. Apostles
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Paul and Peter were crucified during that period. In AD 92, things got worse. The
Emperor at that time was Domitian. He was known to be profoundly insecure. He was
constantly worried that he was going to get overthrown. To compensate for his
insecurity, Domitian demanded that all of his subjects through the empire worship him as
“Lord and God” (Domine et Deus). In the ruins of Ephesus, in modern day Turkey, one
can still see the remains of the temple of Domitian, one of the places where people were
required to worship the emperor. For most Romans, this was no big deal. They were
polytheists, and adding one more god was no big deal. But, for John, this was a big issue.
He would respect the Caesar. He would pay taxes to Caesar. But, worship him? No.
For John, there was only one Lord, Jesus Christ. And he was not going to bend his knees
to worship the emperor. Because of his refusal, he was considered an atheist and
troublemaker. Worship of the emperor was the glue that held the empire together.
We know that in AD 92, Domitian had some 40,000 Christians killed. Timothy
was beaten to death during that time. But, John was somehow spared and exiled to
Patmos.
John knew that the reign of terror of Domitian got worse for churches he left
behind. That’s the context in which this letter is written.
I know our daily struggles are not at par with the sufferings of these Christians.
Yet, they are very real to us. We deal with physical pain and disease. We face the pain
of our own and that of our loved one. It’s not persecution, but it’s painful. We deal with
violence. Just this week, a woman named Quartney Yochum, a transgender woman
living in Skid Row was shot to death in Skid Row. We held a prayer vigil yesterday to
remember her and pray for her and her family, and the healing of the community. There
is so much racism and homophobia in our country. For many of us, it feels like the
system is against us. There is so much brokenness everywhere. Our relationships are
falling apart. There is so much pain, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. In the
midst of these pain, we cry out to God. Where are you God? Why does it seem like evil
is winning?
[Slide 10] II. John’s Prayer in the Spirit
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John says, “On the Lord’s Day, I was in the Spirit.” He was worshipping God one
Sunday morning. I am sure he was praying about all that was going on. I am sure he was
crying out to God. Lord, why is evil winning? Why are you not hearing the cries of the
church? Where are you, Lord?
[Slide 11] III. The Response of Jesus
And how does Jesus respond? By telling John to organize a political resistance
movement? No. By giving new programs for the churches to implement? No. By
giving John a vision of taking over the government so that Christian can replace the
pagans in public office? No.
How does Jesus respond? He unveils reality. He lifts the cover, pulls back the
curtain. Jesus responds with a revelation, with an unveiling of the unseen realty of the
present. God responds by giving John a powerful vision of who Jesus is.
John while he was praying in the Spirit, in verse 10, “I heard behind me a loud
voice like a trumpet.” Then John said, “I turned around to see the voice that was
speaking to me.” He turned around to see the voice! And he saw Jesus, the man he had
been following and loving for so many years. The same man on whose breast he had
leaned during the Las Supper. But, now, he looked so different.
[Slide 12] IV. The Unveiling of Jesus
[Slide 13] 1. Son of Man
He said he saw “someone like a son of man.” What does he mean by that? This
is symbolic language. For John, he knows that Jesus often referred to himself as the son
of man. His followers knew what that meant. People who were well versed in the OT
knew exactly what that meant. God gave prophet Daniel a vision recorded in [Slide 14]
Daniel 7:13-14: 13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of
man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and
was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power;
all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an
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everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will
never be destroyed.
So, the son of man refers to the central figure in history, to the one who has authority,
glory and sovereign power! One like a son of man refers to the pre-existent, heavenly
being who comes to establish the kingdom that cannot be destroyed. This is the name
that Jesus most often used to describe himself and this is the vision that John has. He is
the son of man!
[Slide 15] 2. Among the Lampstands
Now, before we go on to see the detailed description of the son of man, let’s back
up for a second. “And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and among the
lampstands was someone like a son of man.” We find out later in verse 20 that the 7
lampstands stand for 7 churches. In Revelation, numbers have a meaning. 7 is the
number of completeness for Jewish people just like 10 means perfection in our culture.
So, this means that he is writing to all the churches, not just these 7 churches. There are
more than 7 churches in the region that he is writing to. He picked 7 because that means
he is writing to all the churches. So, that means he is writing to us. He is unveiling the
reality that the son of man is in the middle of the churches. He is not above looking
down. He is not outside looking in. He is among them in the middle. Right there is the
middle of the churches. That’s why, in each of the message to the church that Jesus
dictates to the 7 churches, Jesus can say, I KNOW. I know what’s happening in and
among you. I know your hard work. I know your struggles. I know your fears. I know
your pain. I know your emptiness. I KNOW. I KNOW. Jesus knows what you are
going through.
The risen and living Jesus lives and moves among his churches! He is moving
among us right now! That’s the unveiled reality! Jesus is no absentee King who
withdraws from earth after his ascension to return only at the second coming. He’s not
out there controlling what’s going on with remote control. He is present among the
church. He is present right here right now!
[Slide 16] 3. The Robe and the Sash
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Revelation: Unveiling Reality “Vision of the Resurrected and Ascended Jesus” Revelation 1 Kevin Haah
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John then describes the son of man in our midst. He is “dressed in a robe reaching
down to his feet with a golden sash around his chest.” Clothing is meant to tell us
something about who he is. When you see a man wearing a dark blue jacket with a
shining star-like badge, you know he is a police officer. What is Jesus telling us about
who he is? The robe is a priest’s robe, the robe of the High Priest like the one Aaron
wore in Exodus. The glorified son of man is the great high priest! Jesus wants you and
me to know that he is a priest, a mediator. Priest in Latin is pontifex; it is an engineering
term that means “bride-builder.” A priest is one who builds a bride between two sides of
the canyon. Jesus wants us to know that he is the one who bridges the infinite chasm
between us and God. How? Through the atoning sacrifice on the cross. The High Priest
is the one who offers sacrifices of atonement on the Day of Atonement. The Book of
Hebrew tells us that Jesus is our High Priest. [Slide 17] Look at Hebrew 7:27: “Unlike
the other high priests, [Jesus] does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his
own sins, and then for the sins of the people. [Jesus] scarified for theirs sins once for all
when he offered himself.” We will see that the major symbol of Jesus in Revelation is
the sacrificial lamb. Jesus in his unveiling is showing us that he is the high priest who
has made it possible for us to be forgiven and given a new life with God, in his Kingdom.
And this son of man who was dressed as the high priest had a golden sash around
his chest. The sash is sometimes translated as girdle or belt. When a person wears a belt
around his waist, he is getting ready to work. When a belt is worn across the chest, he is
resting is the accomplishment of his work. Jesus is telling us that the high priestly work
of Jesus is finished. It is finished! Jesus has died for our sins and freed us from the
bondage to sin. Jesus has already done everything we need to go from death to life!
Have you cross the bridge that Jesus made possible? You don’t have to fix
yourself; you don’t have to get it together; you don’t have to redeem yourself; you don’t
have to make amend first. You need to come to Jesus and cross the bridge to life that
Jesus made possible. Life that is not just of this world, but also beyond the grave.
[Slide 18] 4. The Hair.
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Then, John describes the hair of this son of man. “The hair on his head was white
like wool, as white as snow.” What does that mean? What does Jesus mean by
presenting himself this way? Jesus knows that John knows his Bible. He knows that
those words are the same words used in the vision Daniel had about the Son of Man
[Slide 19] Daniel 7:9 says: 9 “As I looked,
“thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
Now, what is Jesus saying in Revelation when he presents himself with hair like white as
wool? It is the vision of what Ancient of Days looked like. It is the vision of God. Here,
as clearly as you can find it, John is saying, and Jesus is saying that he is the Ancient of
Days! He is God eternal!
[Slide 20] 5. The Eyes
There’s more that we see of Jesus. “His eyes were like blazing fire.” Fire
illuminates and penetrates. That means that the eyes of the glorified Lord not only look
at us, they look through us, and one commentator said, “penetrating the masks and veils
behind which hide our true being.” This is kind of scary; but it’s liberating. Jesus can
look right through our facades. “O Lord. O Lord! Help me to see myself as you see me!
O Lord, I see the junk that you see, but I also see how your eyes of flame burn away the
junk!” His eyes show us how messed up we are—because it is penetrating, but his eyes
also show us how beautiful we are in his eyes because we have been redeemed by his
blood!
[Slide 21] 6. The Feet
We see his feet. “His feet were like bronze glowing in the furnace.” This again is
referring to Daniel 1 and 2. In a vision given to Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, all
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the human kingdoms are represented as a huge statute with golden head, silver chest and
arms, bronze belly and thighs, but feet are a mixture of iron and clay, a mixture that
cannot bear the weight of those kingdoms. The glorified son of man has feet of
burnished bronze; strong, firm, steady feet, already tested and strengthened by fire. All
other kingdom of this world will fall because their feet can’t withstand the body. But, the
Kingdom of God that Jesus inaugurated go on forever!
It may seem like the oppression and powers of the Kingdom of this world lasts
forever. It may seem like Domitian will last forever. It may seem like death, illness,
emptiness, loneliness, poverty, racism, hunger, hate, and violence will last forever. But,
it will not. It will crumble. Only the Kingdom of God inaugurated by Jesus will last
forever! That’s comforting to those who are persecuted. And that’s comforting to those
of us who are suffering.
[Slide 22] 7. His Voice
Then, we hear his voice. “And his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.”
The sound of rushing waters is both powerful and peaceful. It is mesmerizing. His
words are mighty but peaceful.
[Slide 23] 8. His Right Hand
And “in his right hand he held seven stars.” This tells us what Jesus is doing now.
John later tells us in verse 20 that the seven stars represent the angels of the seven
churches. Remember, seven means complete. So, he is saying that every church has an
angel, not just these seven. Isn’t that amazing? New City Church has an angel that Jesus
is holding in his hand. There is a guardian angel over New City. One star represents one
local church. So, this church thing is not just a human gathering. It is something so
much deeper. There is a mystery to how much he cares for the local church. He is using
his RIGHT hand to hold the stars. This makes me tremble at what he is calling us to be.
This makes me tremble at the awesome responsibility I have been given to lead this
church.
[Slide 24] 9. His Words
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And vision continues: “and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged
sword.” The word of Jesus cuts through all the nonsense. One commentator notes that
the word for sword here is not the long and narrow fencer’s blade, but a short sword use
for close fighting. When the living Jesus speaks he comes right up to us. He gets real
close. And tells us things that penetrates through the center of our being. When he
speaks, it goes real deep and personal.
[Slide 25] 10. His Face
Then, his face. “His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.” Listen to
this. This is really important. In the OT, the greatest blessing imaginable was for the
face of God to shine upon us. In fact, we still use this benediction very often from
Exodus: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be
gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” This risen and
glorified Lord is telling us that his face is shining upon us. Before, when human being
saw the face of God, they died because of their sins. But now, our Lord is telling us that
the face of God is shining upon us. His blessings, his power, his holiness, his love, his
grace, and his peace shine upon us. It is so brilliant that the only way John can describe it
is to say that it is like the sun.
[Slide 26] V. John’s Response to the Unveiling of Jesus
And do you know what John’s reaction was to this vision of the glorified Jesus?
“When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.” What would you have done? I think
if we see the unveiled reality of the glorified Jesus, we can’t help but to fall at his feet as
though dead. I think John was scared. He saw greatness so great that the only thing he
can do is the drop to the ground.
[Slide 27] VI. Jesus’ Response to God
But, how did Jesus respond to John? [Slide 28] “He placed his right hand on me
and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One: I was dead,
and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”
I can’t but shake at hearing this. Jesus is the First and the Last! He is alive! He
is the Living One! He lives forever! And even if we die, he is saying, don’t worry. I
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have the keys to death. This is what he is saying: Stop being afraid. Why? One
commentator said: Because Jesus Christ has walked into the gaping jaws of the greatest
enemy there is. On the cross he let all the powers that threaten to undo us have their
unrestrained way with him. He let death take him captive. And then, he burst out of the
prison and carried away the prison keys!
The glorified Jesus is telling the church not to fear Neros and Domitians of the
world. Even if they kill you, I have the keys! Jesus has stolen the weapon of fear. Fear
can keep us from doing what is right. Fear of criticism, fear of rejection, fear of financial
loss, fear of pain, and fear of death. Jesus said: Do not be afraid! I am alive and I have
the keys!
One of the key messages of the Book of Revelation is to encourage us to
overcome. And what Jesus is telling us is that we need to see the present in light of the
unseen reality of the present. Right now! See what’s really going on. If we don’t see
this Jesus right now, unveiled, we are not going to overcome! Jesus is right here. He is
among the lampstands.
See him. Fall down in humility. Let him put his right hand on you. And let’s
live out our lives without fear! For God who is the First and the Last has embraced us!
He is the living one! He is risen! And he hold the keys to death.
Let’s pray.
Invite Prayer team.