John’s vision of Jesus in the midst of His church is a striking one, for such power, majesty and glory is almost beyond human comprehension, and John reacted to it in a way that is probably much like any one of us might have reacted; he fell on his face as though dead. But this was Jesus, and John was the disciple He loved…

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. 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.

Revelation 1:17-18

The most notable thing about these 2 verses for me is Jesus putting His hand on John and saying “do not be afraid.” Jesus could have just barked the command, “do not be afraid” but He didn’t; He reached out and touched him first; it wasn’t a command not be afraid, it was an act of love and compassion… right in the middle of His glory and power and majesty.

That was the Jesus John had known; that is the Jesus I know.

Jesus went on to identify Himself as God, and yet right in the middle of His glory, identifying Himself as God, we see an element of the familiar, of relationship: I was dead, and now look; I am alive for ever and ever! Can you hear the familiar tone of excitement in the voice? Then He makes this point really jump out: And I hold the keys of death and Hades.

Jesus had already used the keys of death and Hades (land of the dead) for His own benefit; why is He bringing them along now? For John’s benefit, for your benefit and for mine as well.

Yep, that’s the Jesus John knew, and the Jesus I know too.

“Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. 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.

Revelation 1:19-20

I mentioned verse 19 in an earlier post; it is significant because it gives the time reference for the rest of Revelation. John is to write what he has seen; we’ve just read it. John is to write what is now, that comes next, the letters to the seven churches. John is to write what will take place later, and “later” begins in 4:1, just as soon as the letter writing is complete. Then Jesus tells John what the seven stars and the seven lampstands represent; the angels (messengers) to the churches, and the churches of Asia, respectively.

With that combination, we know what is coming in chapters 2 and 3; see you next time!