Christ In His Greatness And His Disciple John As Seen In Revelation
Feature 3 – February 2025 – Grace & Truth Magazine
Christ In His Greatness And His Disciple John As Seen In Revelation 1
John’s writings impress us in the way they present the greatness of our Lord Jesus Christ, each with its particular focus and presentation. His gospel is quite different from the other gospels, and John’s epistles are clearly distinct. Reading through Revelation 1 we notice how John, led by the Holy Spirit, wrote about Jesus in a simple yet profound way. Take verse 7 for example ( ESV ): “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen.”
“Revelation” 1 means “unveiling” or “uncovering.” It is used, for example, to inaugurate a statue in honor of someone. Likewise, the book of Revelation makes known what is going to happen and why, describing many details about Christ and the coming judgments. It shows who the supreme Judge really is: the Lord Jesus Christ, the Revealer of God’s judgments as well as their Executor, ultimately introducing His reign in glory.
Taken together, the verb “to reveal” and its corresponding noun “revelation” occur seven times in the Gospels, five times in Peter’s writings and 24 times in Paul’s. The last time we find one of these terms in the Greek New Testament is in the book of Revelation, which is said to be “of Jesus Christ” (1:1). This means that the revelation belongs to Him and that it is about Him.
The same verse mentions that God gave the revelation to Jesus Christ “to show to His servants the things that must soon take place.” The Greek word for “must” 2 indicates God’s plan and sovereignty, telling us of the certainty of what was about to be revealed. Jesus showed these things by sending His angel to His bondservant John. This was not to satisfy anyone’s curiosity but to instruct His servants, who are eager to know and to do God’s will, being “doers of the Word, and not hearers only” (Jas. 1:22).
The Person Of The Revelation
“Jesus” occurs 14 (2x7) times in Revelation. Sometimes His name “Christ” is added (1:1-2,5). In verse 9 (ESV) we read of “the patient endurance that [is] in Jesus” and “the testimony of Jesus.” This last phrase also occurs in Revelation 12:17, 19:10 and 20:4. A few other phrases including the name “Jesus” are “the faith in Jesus” (14:12), “I, Jesus” (22:16) and “Lord Jesus” (22:20-21).
The first time the name “Jesus” occurs in the New Testament is in its very first verse (Mt. 1:1). When speaking about Jesus in verse 16, Matthew added, “who is called Christ” – which represents a Greek word translating the Hebrew Messiah. Both terms mean “Anointed.” “Jesus,” or Yeshua, means “Yah is salvation.” Yah is a short form of His Hebrew name Yahweh, or “Jehovah,” usually written as “LORD.” Jesus is therefore referred to as being “God over all, blessed forever” (Rom. 9:5).
Beginning from the moment “the Word became flesh” (Jn. 1:14), Scripture presents Jesus as fully human. These two aspects of His person are forever inseparable, continuing even in glory. They imply an unfathomable mystery, magnificently summarized in 1 Timothy 3:16 as being “great indeed.” Praise God for this mystery, which causes us to worship the Father and the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit (consider Lk. 1–2; Jn. 1).
Revelation 1:8 says, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’” With these words, the Lord presented Himself to John and confirmed the mystery alluded to earlier, namely, that He, the Lord Jesus, is perfectly Man and, at the same time, truly God in His unfathomable greatness. In this compound name, “Alpha” is the first letter of the Greek alphabet and “Omega” is its last letter. In other words, every letter is needed to express who He is – the One “who is and who was and who is to come.” He is above time and space, yet He steps into space and time as He pleases.
His name “the Almighty” is the compound Hebrew name El-Shaddai, which implies His total control and unfathomable power. As God (El) He controls all, whereas Shaddai is related to a word meaning “breast,” indicating His loving care. Through faith, John was intimately linked to the Lord Jesus (consider what John wrote about himself in Jn. 13:25).
The Writer Of Revelation
As His disciple, John introduced himself to all believers “in Jesus” as their “brother” in Christ (Rev. 1:9). The expression “in Jesus” highlights John’s personal fellowship with Him, depending on Him and living for Him. In this way John is an example for us today. His close relationship with Jesus implies that John was not ashamed to suffer for his Master, even though He was rejected by and in this world. As Jesus’ disciple, John wholeheartedly identified with the Messiah, who now revealed Himself to His disciple in a new way, different from how John had known Him previously. John also alluded to his situation as being a companion or partner in the tribulation. This last word implies the pressure, hardship and afflictions John experienced and shared with all true disciples of Jesus during the time of His rejection.
God gave this revelation to Jesus Christ – “which God gave Him” (v.1) – using signs to communicate these matters effectively. Signs convey things in a concise and clear way, whereas it would take many words to explain the same matters in words only. As to these things, John referred to himself as being a “witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ” (v.2). The words “witness” and “testimony” are from the same root in the Greek text, which also means “martyr.” Living in a world opposed to God and to His interests, God’s witnesses often experience, or have experienced, persecution and martyrdom, just as had happened to the Old Testament prophets. As witnesses of God and of Jesus, many of them gave their lives, just as Stephen did, the first martyr in Church history (Acts 7; Heb. 11).
John was a faithful witness in the sense that he was reliable, “even to all that he saw” (Rev. 1:2). He did not select certain details of God’s revelation while skipping other points, as we sometimes do.
Even though Revelation unfolds many judgments, it is remarkable that it contains seven blessings (v.3, 14:13, 16:15, 19:9, 20:6, 22:7,14). This topic recommends itself to your further study, as these verses refer to believers who belong to different time periods, or faith-families, whether in the past, present or future. All believers are called “blessed.”
There is a sense of urgency for the revelation in the words, “for the time is near” (1:3, 22:10). The Lord desires all of His servants to be always ready to listen to His Word and do it, just as we learn from the instruction given to young Samuel, “Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears” (1 Sam. 3:9). What a blessing it is to hear and read the Word of God! Of course, this implies being doers of the Word, keeping the things written in it, always ready to do His bidding while realizing that He may come at any moment.
The Presentation Of His Greatness In Revelation
At the time John was writing the book of Revelation, there were seven churches – literally “assemblies,” companies of those who had been called out – in the Roman province of Asia, situated in present-day Turkey. Being under Roman law, the believers were challenged to be faithful citizens as well as true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ (read Rom. 13; 1 Pet. 1:1, 2:11-17). The same instructions – and resources – apply to all believers until the Lord’s coming for us (1 Th. 4:12-18). The resources are summed up in Revelation 1:4, saying, “Grace to you and peace from Him.” These words not only express a desire but also a reality and certainty, namely, that our blessed Lord will, by the Holy Spirit, make the needed resources available to His assemblies worldwide. He is sufficient for all the needs of His people.
The Holy Spirit is presented to us as “seven spirits” before God’s heavenly throne on which the Lord Jesus is seated (v.4). The one Holy Spirit is at the same time in heaven and on earth – a mystery. Truly, the unity and omnipresence of God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) will forever remain a mystery to humans!
Revelation 1:5 presents Christ’s past, present and future greatness. Our Lord Jesus Christ is “the faithful Witness.” This implies His ministry as God’s Witness and Representative in heaven just as the Lord served Him on earth.
In the same verse He is called “the Firstborn of the dead.” This term emphasizes His power in resurrection, which is beyond our understanding. The title shows His unfathomable victory over the power of death (read 1 Cor. 15), and it links the fact that He, Jesus, is “the Firstborn of all creation” and “the Firstborn from the dead” (Col. 1:15,18). He always must have the first place, being “preeminent” (v.18). When God predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son, He planned that the Lord Jesus, the Son of the Father’s love, would also be “the Firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29 NKJV). How great He is, and how blessed we are to have this relationship with Him, which cannot be annulled by any power – even the power of death.
Revelation 1:5 goes on to state that He is also “the Ruler over the kings of the earth,” highlighting His glory in the world to come. The immediate response to His greatness is given at once: “To Him who loves us, and has washed us from our sins in His blood, and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father: to Him [be] the glory and the might to the ages of ages. Amen” (vv.5-6 JND). This response is because of who He is “who loves us,” implying that He has always loved us, even before He came into the world. How wonderful!
Can you think of one greater than the Lord Jesus? He is the One who not only loved us while on earth as He gave Himself for us, for the glory of God, but He also loves us as He is now in heaven. Indeed, He still loves us with the same love He displayed when giving Himself on the cross as the supreme Sacrifice. It was sufficient to set us free from the power of sin and death because it covered each sin we ever committed, even all the sins3 of all the believers whenever and wherever they are or have lived! There is no greater sacrifice than His!
A never-ending response is due to Him: “To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood” (v.5 ESV). This response addresses who He is and why He was given: because He has loved us and still loves us despite our failures.4 We also read how He showed this love: His perfect sacrifice.
Verse 6 describes what He has made of us, namely, “kings” (NKJV) to reign with Him, representing and honoring God. It shows that He has enabled us to bring a suitable response to God as “priests,” serving in His presence and according to His high standards, bringing Him a response that will never end. How great He is! Therefore this verse goes on to say, “To Him be glory and dominion forever and ever” (v.6), concluding with the word “Amen,” which means “so be it” or “may it thus be.” It represents our desire for the Lord Jesus to receive all honor and glory, and that God the Father may thus be honored, now and forever. Our attention is drawn to Christ’s greatness in relation to the world to come. We already see Him “crowned with glory and honor” (Heb. 2:9), whereas the world does not yet see Him in this way. Soon every knee will bow before Him, and every mouth confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Phil. 2:10-11).
These topics imply our privileges and activities as His redeemed ones, to honor our Lord Jesus and our God and Father now and forever! His glory and dominion are never-ending. How blessed are we to be thus occupied with the greatness of our Beloved and with these wonderful privileges!
ENDNOTES
1. Luke, the writer of Luke and Acts, used “revelation” just as the Spirit led John to do in Revelation 1:1 (ESV), where we read: “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John.” At a time when people did not know the differences between the first and second coming of the Lord Jesus, Luke used the word in relation to Jesus’ first coming, quoting Simeon. He simply announced His coming as “a light for revelation of the Gentiles and the glory of Thy people Israel” (Lk. 2:32 JND). This statement implies two distinct events: the Lord’s coming in humiliation and the Lord’s appearance in public glory.
2. The Greek word dei, translated “must” in this verse, occurs 10 times in John’s gospel (3:7,14,30, 4:4,20,24, 9:4, 10:16, 12:34, 20:9). It appears eight times in Revelation (1:1, 4:1, 10:11, 11:5, 13:10, 17:10, 20:3, 22:6).
3. Christ’s work on the cross was sufficient to satisfy God’s righteous claims with respect to all sins. Jesus was the perfect Substitute, only for those who believe. In the three hours of darkness on the cross, the Lord Jesus bore the judgment of all sins of those who would believe, while at the same time His work on the cross glorified God where sin had dishonored Him. In other words, His work was sufficient that all could be saved, but this does not set aside the need of each individual sinner to repent and confess his sins. Christ died for all, but He was the substitute only of those who repent and believe.
4. This does not mean that He is indifferent to our failures and sins. God’s Word teaches us to confess our sins (1 Jn. 1:9).
By Alfred Bouter