Dear Ones:
As far as we know, when John the Apostle wrote the book of the Revelation, he was alone. He had been exiled to the Isle of Patmos, and though he would certainly have contact with individuals from time to time, he was, for all intents and purposes, “dead to the world.” It is in this context that the Lord Jesus, by His Spirit, will reveal Himself to John, and this in a very specific way. The unveiling of the risen Christ in His glory would not only be striking and captivating. It would be transformational. The reaction of John to the vision will be as he recounts: “And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead.” (Rev. 1:17) Already John had said that he had heard the voice of the Lord declaring, “I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last (…the beginning and the ending…).” (v.8,11) It is one thing to HEAR the words of the eternal God. It is quite another to see Him in His glory. Most certainly the Lord chose this order and progressing magnitude of the revelation, to impress upon John, and his brethren, that the One who was speaking was the One who possess all power and authority. He is the “Almighty,” and as such, He possesses “…the keys of hell and death.” What a prelude to the seven letters to the churches, and all that concerns future events of prophecy!! He IS the great I AM, who will bring His will to pass. It is in that moment of the vision of Christ, that the life of John is again changed. It will be as the readers of the book of Revelation see and perceive the truth of who the glorified Christ truly is, that they will too be changed. The importance of His words take on a new depth, and reality to their hearts. It is by the ‘renewing of their minds” that they are transformed. (Rom. 12:2)
Why come back again and again to the “vision” of Christ, our concept of Him? Paul writes to the believers at Corinth: “But we ALL with open face beholding the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor. 3:18) The more we truly see Christ, behold Him, worship Him, the more He does a work of transformation in us. Is this His purpose? Again, Paul wrote to the believers at Rome: “For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to BE CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE OF HIS SON…” (Rom. 8:29) Christ saves us, redeems us, to transform us into the image of His Son, for His glory, and our highest blessing. But it all begins “in the sanctuary,” “in the closet (quiet place, place of aloneness…), where the soul truly communes with God. The basic reality is this: If Christ is not a reality to us in the quiet place, then He will NOT be such in the crowd. Indeed, what we ARE in the quiet place with Christ, will determine what we are in the world, in the crowd.
Every child of God is faced with this very important question: What sort of reality is the Lord Jesus Christ to me? Does my vision of Him make Him to be the dominant factor of my life? It is a fact that the first of the ten commandments has to do, not only with idolatry and “having no other gods before Him…,” but the worship of Him “…in Spirit and truth.” And it is as we do so, that he changes us from glory to glory, and He dominates our lives as the Lord, our King and our God.
Lastly, it must be said that our first responsibility is to worship God, then serve Him. “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and Him only shalt thou serve.” (Matt. 4:10) The Psalmist tells us that when his feet had almost slipped by what he perceived in the world, with regard to injustice, and wickedness of the unbelieving, that it was painful for him, and he thought his efforts to live righteously were vain. (Ps. 73:13,16) It will be like this he explains what occured thereafter: “…UNTIL I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.” (v.17) It is as the Psalmist worships, that truth is revealed to him. He in essence sees God as HE IS, and what the Lord will do consequently. The result…transformation…his mind and perspective changes.
Dear Lord, Open Thou our eyes by Thy Spirit to not only see the truth as it is in Christ, but to see the Christ of the truth, who is Almighty, the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. Enlarge our hearts to believe Thee according to the true and great revelation of thyself. Then we shall be changed in our minds and hearts, and others will SEE the reality of God in us, for Thy glory. Amen.
Love, Dad