| Chapter Three The Faithful Witness “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.” Revelation 1:8 He is the author and finisher of our faith. He is the mighty Counselor and the Redeemer of mankind through His shed blood. He is the Prince of Peace and the Lord of lords and the King of kings. He is the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. He is the Saviour, the good shepherd, the bread of life from whom comes a river of living waters. He is the potter and we are the clay. He is the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star. He is the creator of all things that ever were made. He is the Light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He is the Word of God that became flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth. He is the only begotten of the Father. He is the great I AM and the Amen. He is the first and the last, the Alpha and the Omega and the beginning and the ending. Yet, through all of this He is foremost the faithful witness of the glory of God and of Heaven above for all those who have ears to hear and eyes to see. There is only one book in the Bible that is authored directly by our Lord and not through the Holy Ghost, the Revelation of Jesus Christ: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.” Revelation 1:1-2 The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. The Revelation of Jesus Christ is a blessing to those that “readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” In all these things, it is the only book of the Bible authored and given directly by our Lord, Saviour and Redeemer, Jesus Christ of Nazareth instead of being written through the Holy Ghost. Yet, many in our churches commonly call it the “Revelation of John” instead of the “Revelation of Jesus Christ” “who is the faithful witness.” Yet it is instead, our Lord’s own testimony of those things that He said: “must shortly come to pass.” This is what the entire focus of the book of Revelation is, the testimony of our Lord Himself as He appeared to the humble man named John, whom He loved. He is the “faithful witness.” “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.” John 18:37b The book of Revelation is held by many to be an indecipherable, symbolic book with no literal interpretations. Yet the many examples from the Old Testament of the prophetic and likewise symbolic books such as Ezekiel, Daniel and Zechariah with several literal fulfillments from our Lord’s first advent speak otherwise. Despite this simple fact, the book of Revelation is a much misunderstood and much disputed book. This need not be the case however as it is to be understood as all other Scriptures, through prayer and supplication and understanding that no prophecy of the Scriptures are of any private interpretation. To gain understanding of this very logical and ordered book, any student of the Revelation must first find the proper framework and time course in which the book is ordered. In fact, it is in this most fundamental endeavor that Satan has cast doubt upon this Word to many an unwary reader in the multitude of commentaries available. Therefore, we will present the foundational outline that the entire book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, who is the “faithful witness,” is based upon. In so doing, there are three key verses in the first chapter that set the stage for the entire prophecy. The understanding of the meaning of these three verses will provide a logical structure on which the remaining chapters will flow with the fruits of wisdom and knowledge in the blessings promised by God. These verses are: 1) The meaning of “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.” Revelation 1:10 2) The meaning of the one “which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” Revelation 1:8 3) The meaning of the “things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter.” Revelation 1:19 We will first start with what was the spiritual state of John as he received the vision from our Lord. There are some who assert that he was in a “trance” like Peter was when he was commanded to kill and eat those things that were unclean thus symbolically representing the outpouring of the Holy Spirit unto the Gentiles. Yet, the Bible does not specifically state that John was in a trance as it does in Acts 10:10 for Peter as well as with Balaam in numbers 24:4&16 and with Paul in Acts 22: 17. Some who assert that John was in a trance take one step further to claim that in this trance state, he was transported into the future during the “day of the Lord,” referring to the time of his vengeance when He shall avenge all the enemies of Israel who have assembled against her. There are two problems with this assertion; first, the logical conclusions stemming from John being in a future state during the tribulation are inconsistent with “the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter.” Simply speaking, if John’s perspective of his present state was being transported in a trance to the time of the tribulation, then the frame of reference for the present and future loses meaningful logic. If the “present” is the time of the tribulation, then when he writes of the things that “are” they would in this reality have already occurred in the past. This is contradictory and can not stand the test of the Scriptures. John does indeed speak in three places of being transported in his spirit to heaven (Revelation 4:1-2), the wilderness (Revelation 17:1-3) and to a great and high mountain (Revelation 21: 10). In all three of these cases, it was John’s own spirit that He was transported in and not in the Holy Spirit as some would assert he was in Revelation 1:10. Instead, Revelation 1:10 is a very simple statement with a very simple meaning. The term “in the Spirit” is found in several other places in the New Testament. In Romans 8:1-9 we read: “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Likewise in Galatians 5:16 & 25, the term: “in the Spirit” is referring to the state of being clean of the works of the flesh through the power of the Holy Spirit. A more specific statement of the meaning of the term “in the Spirit” is found in Ephesians 6:18: “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” Therefore, the very simple statement by John that he was “in the Spirit” needs no further interpretation beyond what the Scriptures already clearly state. The second half of Revelation 1:10 is another phrase that is disputed by many. The simple statement of “the Lord’s day” succinctly means that day that belongs to the Lord: The Lord’s Day (Part 2) by Joshua Creel “In Revelation 1:10 we read that John "was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day. . .”The word translated "Lord’s" is the Greek word Kuriakos, meaning "that which belongs to the Lord." This word is used only twice in the New Testament: in reference to the Lord’s Day, Rev. 1:10, and in reference to the Lord’s Supper, I Cor. 11:20. Thus when we speak of the Lord’s Day or the Lord’s Supper we are in essence saying "the day that belongs to the Lord" and the "supper that belongs to the Lord." 14. The Lord’s Day “6. Why do you suppose John called this day the "Lord’s day" (Re 1:10) without any further explanation? Mt 28:1, Mk 16:2, Lk 24:1, Jn 20:1, 1Co 11:10. . .The "Lord’s Day" is from a unique phrase in the Greek, kuriakon hemeran, which literally reads, "the day belonging to the Lord." The words "belonging to the Lord" are from kuriakos, which occurs in the NT only here and in 1Co 11:20, where Paul uses it to refer to the "Lord’s Supper" or the "Supper belonging to the Lord" (kuriakon deipnon). . .” NT Restoration Foundation 2752 Evans Dale Circle Atlanta GA 30340 U.S.A. Therefore, from the simple English statement “the Lord’s day” which literally means “the day belonging to the Lord” and from those that use the Greek to confirm the translations show that John was referring to a specific day, and not a period of time. Whether one argues that the Lord’s day is on any specific day of the week, the first or the seventh, is not a matter to be debated in our current discussion. Romans chapter 14 calls each of us to be fully persuaded in our own mind and judge no other man on which day they regard. The point of this matter is that John was referring to a specific day of the week and that he was in prayer and supplication in the Spirit and not in the flesh at the time that the Lord appeared unto him. This is the same circumstance that Daniel was in at the time that the Lord appeared to him as recorded in Daniel 10:1-9. In summary, there is no factual statement that John was in a trance and there is no factual statement that John was transported into the future time known as the great and terrible day of the Lord. Instead, the simple, concise and pure meaning of this verse is that John was in prayer and supplication on the “Lord’s day,” which is a specific day of the week, when the Lord appeared to him sometime near the end of the first century. The second verse that we will look at in establishing the framework and structure of the entire book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ is 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.” In this verse, the Lord is giving some of His own credentials as to who He is as the “faithful witness.” This phrase is first seen in Revelation 1:4: “from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; . . .” Then in verse 1:5 He states: “And from Jesus Christ who is the faithful witness, . . .” This is the man Jesus who is the Word that came in the flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. This is the loving Saviour who is alive for ever more. The verse continues: “and the first begotten of the dead, . . .” In Revelation 1:18, the Lord leaves nothing to the imagination on the meaning of the one that “is” and “was.”: “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” The full explanation continues in Revelation 1:7: “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.” This is confirmed in Revelation 22:20: “He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” This is the one who “is” alive for ever more as the faithful witness, who was dead and is now the first begotten of the dead in His resurrection and is to come. This is the complete meaning of these verses as they have interpreted themselves without any doubt or confusion. This likewise sets the time that “is” as the time that we commonly refer to as the “church age.” It will end with His coming for us first in the clouds during the rapture and then we shall return with Him during His second coming. There are several other verses in the book of Revelation that gain meaning for the time that “is” from what has been established concretely and literally here by the Lord Himself. Thirdly, the last of the three verses in our study is the one that is most often misinterpreted by almost every commentator that I have seen: “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;” The almost universal interpretation of this verse is the past, the present,and the future. Let us examine closer to see why this is not supported by a careful analysis of the Scriptures. First, when the Lord told John to “Write the things which thou has seen,” we must look at this verse in the context of the rest of the text (Isaiah 28:9-13). In Revelation 1:11 the Lord states: “. . .What thou seest, write in a book, . . .” Then in Revelation 1:12, John states: “And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks:” Following in Revelation 1:17, John states: “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead.” This then is the context of “Write the things which thou hast seen. . .” Here again is another example of a clear, logical progression that leaves no room for the private interpretation of this part of the verse as “THE PAST.” John is in the presence of the great “I AM” and he records it as such: “I saw him.” This is not in any sense referring to the past. It is simply what it says it is, the things which thou hast seen (i.e. John’s vision of our Saviour in all His Heavenly glory). Secondly, referring to the “things which are,” as the “PRESENT” is also troublesome in that it diverts attention away from the whole discourse of the prophecy of the significant characteristics of the church age as found in Revelation chapters two and three. The seven literal churches also represented prophetically the seven church ages that we have come through in the last two thousand years as we sit on the edge of completion just before our Lord returns for us. Thirdly, calling “the things hereafter,” the “FUTURE,” further diverts the reader from the fulfillment of this verse in Revelation 4:1: “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” In fact, following the chronological sequences through the book of Revelation, we find a clear, concise, logical progression throughout. Many students of the Book of Revelation fail to see its chronological sequences by not recognizing the “commercial breaks” that the storyline takes in describing the different characters of this prophecy. When watching on television a marathon race in the Olympics, the viewer is not confused on the chronology of the race if a momentary pause is taken to detail the biography of the leader or his pursuers. Likewise, the book of Revelation has the chronological succession of seven seals, seven trumpets, seven vials and seven thunders during the time of great tribulation upon the earth. This is followed by the chronologic detail of the millennium, the great white throne judgement and the new heaven and earth. Interspersed in this time line is the detail on several characters such as the two witnesses of chapter eleven; the woman, dragon, and manchild in chapter twelve; the beast from the earth in chapter thirteen; and the woman atop the scarlet colored beast in chapters seventeen and eighteen. The chronology of these individual characters does not change the underlying chronology of the seven seals, trumpets, vials and thunders, in the same manner that the story of the leader of the race does not change the chronology of the race itself. We must further take the example of the chronologic progression of chapters four through twenty-two as a pattern that is also found in the first three chapters of the book of Revelation as well. Therefore, the reader of the book of Revelation must not fail to recognize the prophetic importance of the seven successive church ages in chapters two and three as represented by the seven individual churches: Ephesus The time of the apostles Smyrna The time of persecution Pergamus The marriage with the pagan world Thyatira The adulterous church Sardis The dead church Philadelphia The keeper of the Word Laodicians The lukewarm church These are seven signs, seven landmarks on the prophetic road map leading to our Lord’s second coming. In the chronology of the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:1), the very next verse given after the things that “are” is Revelation 4: 1, where a door was opened in heaven and John was called up to see the things which must be “hereafter.” This is clear and incontrovertible evidence of the truth of the pre-tribulation rapture denied and confused by so many. Yet, if the patterns that we see in the first chapter alone continue throughout the rest of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, this simply must be true by the chronological and progressive revelation of our Lord throughout the finishing book in the Bible. No wonder Satan has launched such a concerted effort to spread the lies about this book and its internal order and organization. Therefore, the correct interpretation of what “the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;” means is to simply not tamper with the perfection of His Word and add anything to it that is not intended. These three verses show a level of organization and perfection of harmonized self interpretation that is a shadow of what follows throughout the rest of the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, who is the author and finisher of our faith, and He is “the faithful witness.” Please review these comments prayerfully and apply these principles to the remaining chapters seeking always to discover the subtle layers of organization, order and clarity with which the Lord unveils the secrets that the kings and rulers of the earth try so desperately to hide from us (Psalm 2). The secret to understanding this small little book is held by the literal interpretation of the same verse that offers it’s blessing: “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” This is as much of a commandment as are the Ten Commandments given to Moses. We need no substitutes for what the Lord has already made perfect. In Revelation 22:18-19, we are sternly warned about adding or taking away from His Word: “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book. And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” My fellow brethren in Christ, the simple answers to this supremely ordered book can not be found in doctrines “leavened” by the religious “Pharisees.” It is only by keeping those things which are written therein literally that you will hear His Words of warning and blessing. Come to the source of all inspiration (But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.” Job 32:8) and come to see those things which must shortly come to pass. “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” Return to Home Page (www.kjv1611revealed.com) |
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