As you read Revelation chapter 1, verses 1-9, keep in mind that John is writing an introduction to the seven churches in Asia. John received the visions and prophecies found in the book of Revelation because of Christ’s obedience to God. Christ humbled himself to the word of God, by fulfilling the prophecies in the Old Testament, including dying on the cross. Revelation 1:1 states, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him...” John made this statement because Christ prevailed to take the book from the Most High’s hand, see Revelation 5:1-7.
Introduction and Blessing to the Seven Churches
Revelation 1:1: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him,” [Christ] “to shew unto his servants" [The Elect, see John 10:27-29 and Revelation 7:2-4, 14-15] "things which must shortly come to pass; and he” [Christ] “sent and signified it by his angel” [The angel sent to reveal Revelation] “unto his servant John:” The servants of the Lord are the 144,000/Saints of the Most High.
Revelation 1:1 in part, states “…and he
sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant
John:” It is important to note, that
the angel sent to reveal the book of Revelation, was commanded by
Christ to show and speak (signify), Christ's words to John.
Everything in the book of Revelation is
revealed to John by the angel of Christ! Christ, through his
angel, is warning, revealing and preparing his servants
for what shall shortly come to pass.
An example of the angel speaking the words of Christ
is found in Revelation 22:7:
“Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the
sayings of the prophecy of this book.” Clearly the words spoken are those of Christ. When
read in context, the angel sent by Christ is speaking,
see
Revelation 21:9 through
Revelation 22:17. There are other
examples throughout the book of Revelation where the
angel speaks using Christ’s words.
This is similar to the events which took place
concerning the Israelites, when they left Egypt in the
Old Testament. The Most High sent his angel to guide and
speak His words unto Moses and the children of Israel, read Exodus 23:20:
“Behold, I" [The Most High] "send an Angel” [Christ, read
1 Corinthians 10:1-4] “before thee, to keep
thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which
I have prepared.” [The land of Israel]
Verse 21: “Beware of him, and obey his
voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your
transgressions: for my name is in him.”
Verse 22: “But if thou shalt indeed
obey his voice," [Christ spoke the Most
High’s words to Moses and the Israelites in the
Wilderness] "and do all that I speak; then I will be an
enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine
adversaries.”
Revelation 1:2: “Who” [John, one of the 12
disciples, see Acts 10:39-43,
Peter is explaining that the 12 disciples are the witnesses chosen
by God] “bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of
Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.” This
statement affirms that John was with Christ from the
beginning; he bore record of the acts of Christ and continues to
teach, by way of letters, when exiled on the island of Patmos.
Revelation 1:3: “Blessed is he that readeth,”
[The book of Revelation] “and they" [The
144,000/Servants of God/Saints of the Most High] "that hear
the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are
written therein:” [The 144,000/Servants of God/Saints of
the Most High will be blessed to understand,
and do the will of God, by humbling themselves and obeying his word unto
death] “for the time is at hand.” The time began when
John sent the book of Revelation to the seven churches in Asia,
this will be explained in Revelation chapters 2
and 3.
Revelation 1:4: “John to the seven churches which are in Asia:”
[The book of Revelation was written and sent to the seven
churches in Asia. These churches consisted of Jews and Gentiles
who followed the New Covenant/Testament of God, which is the
teachings of Christ, see Acts 18:18-21 and
Acts 19:1, 8-10.] “Grace be unto you, and peace, from him
which is, and which was, and which is to come;” [The Most High,
see Revelation 4:8]
“and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;”
See Revelation 4:4-11 and Revelation 5:6.
Revelation 1:5: “And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful
witness," [See John 3:31-34] "and the first begotten of the dead,"
[See Colossians 1:14-18] "and the prince of
the kings of the earth." [See Ephesians 1:20-21]
"Unto him" [Christ] "that loved us," [The
144,000/Servants of God/Saints of the Most High] "and washed us" [The
144,000/Servants of God/Saints of the Most High] "from our sins in his own blood,”
Revelation 1:6: “And hath made us" [The
144,000/Servants of God/Saints of the Most High] "kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him"
[Christ] "be glory and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” This proves that Christ
died for both the Jews and Gentiles that accepted and followed
his teachings (The New Covenant).
Revelation 1:7: “Behold, he" [Christ]
"cometh with clouds; and every eye
shall see him," [Christ] "and they also which pierced him: [See, Matthew 27:25,
Acts 2:36 and
Zachariah 12:10] “and all kindreds of the earth shall wail
because of him. Even so, Amen.”
Revelation 1:8: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the
ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to
come, the Almighty.” Christ is
coming to conquer and destroy the present world. This will be
proven as we continue through Revelation.
Revelation 1:9: “I John, who also am your brother,"
[Of the 144,000/Servants of God/Saints of the Most High] "and companion
in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ,
was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and
for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” During the time of the
Romans, John was imprisoned and persecuted on the island of
Patmos for teaching the word of Christ.
In Revelation 1:11 The angel of Christ commands John to write down what he sees, “…What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia…” John fulfils that commandment, see Revelation 1:12-17. Additionally, John is commanded in Revelation 1:19: “Write the things which thou hast seen,” [See Revelation 1:13-17] “and the things which are,” [See Revelation 2:1 through Revelation 3:22, the sins of the churches in Asia, Christ warns them to repent] “and the things which shall be hereafter.” See Revelation 4:1 through Revelation 22:5, they are the visions and prophesies leading up to the second coming of Christ his thousand year reign, and New Jerusalem.
The Angel of Christ sent to John
Revelation 1:10: “I"
[John] "was in the Spirit on the Lord's
day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,”
[The angel of Christ, sent to speak his words]
Verse
11: “Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and,
What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven
churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and
unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto
Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.”
Revelation 1:12: “And I" [John] "turned to see the voice
that spake with me. And being turned, I" [John] "saw seven golden
candlesticks;”
Revelation 1:13: “And in the midst of the seven
candlesticks” [See verse 20,
the seven candlesticks are the seven churches throughout Asia] “one like unto the Son
of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about
the paps with a golden girdle.”
Revelation1:14:
“His head and his
hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were
as a flame of fire;”
Revelation1:15: “And his feet like unto fine
brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the
sound of many waters.” As revealed by “his angel” this is the
description of Christ, which every eye shall see when he his
returns, Revelation 1:7 and Revelation 19:11-16.
Revelation 1:16: “And he had in his right hand
seven stars:” [See verse 20,
the seven stars are the leaders of the seven churches in Asia] “and out of his mouth
went a sharp twoedged sword:” [The twoedged sword represents the
fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries of Christ,
which includes the rebellious that refuse to repent in the seven churches, read Revelation 19:15 and
Hebrews 10:25-27] “and his countenance was as the sun shineth in
his strength.”
Revelation 1:17: “And when I" [John]
"saw him, I fell at
his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying
unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:”
Revelation1:18:
“I am
he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for
evermore, Amen;” [Roman 6:9: “Knowing that Christ, being raised
from the dead, dieth no more; death no more hath dominion over
Him.”] “and have the keys of hell and of death.” Christ has the
keys/power to save and deliver from hell and death.
Hell and Death came into the world when Adam sinned.
I
Corinthians 15:21: “For since by man came death, by Man
came also the resurrection of the dead.” Verse 22:
“For
as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made
alive”
Death:
The punishment of “death” was given to Adam in Genesis
3:17: “And unto Adam He said, Because thou hast
hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of
the tree of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt
not eat of it, cursed is the ground for thy sake; in
sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.”
Verse 18: “Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth
to thee, and thou shalt eat the herb of the field.”
Verse 19: “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread
till thou return unto the ground, for out of it wast
thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou
return." Adam broke the Lord’s commandment, by eating
the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
As a result, his punishment was a physical death.
Genesis 3:17-18, Adam's life
changed, it was replaced with hard work and sorrows
(death). The earth was cursed, and would no longer
provide food which he freely ate, without labor, in the
Garden of Eden.
Hell:
The punishment of death as explained above also includes
hell. 2 Peters 2:1-4: “For if God spared not the angels”
[Or messengers (people), see 2 Peter 2:1-9]
“that sinned, but cast them down to hell,” [Hell
is a place, in the nether parts of the earth, a place
where the dead are, see
Ezekiel 32:17-24]
“and delivered them” [The angels or messengers
that sinned] “into chains of darkness,” [No
understanding of the word of God] “to be reserved
unto judgment;” See Revelation 20:11-13,
15. The punishment of death that fell
upon all flesh as a result of Adam’s sin, will be taken
out of the earth, see Revelation 20:14.
Revelation 1:19: “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the
things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;”
See
Message to reader: John Told Write Down What He Sees.
Revelation 1:20:
“The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand,
and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the
angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which
thou sawest are the seven churches.” The definition of the word
angles is messengers; they are the leaders/teachers in the
churches of Asia.
