"It was the Lord's Day and I was worshipping in the Spirit. Suddenly I heard a loud voice behind me, a voice that sounded like a trumpet blast. It said, "Write down what you see and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicia. When I turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven golden lampstands. And standing in the middle of the lampstands was the Son of Man. He was wearing a gold robe with a gold sash across His chest. His head and His hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And His eyes were bright as bronze refined in a furnace and His voice thundered like the mighty ocean waves. He held seven stars in His right hand and a sharp two edged sword came from His mouth. And His face was as bright as the sun in all its brilliance. When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me and said, "Do not be afraid! I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One who died. Look I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave. Write down what you have seen - both the things that are happening and the things that will happen later." Revelation 1:10-19
Before we get too far into Chapter 1 of the Book of Revelation, John tells us where the Revelation originated. I’m sure the day was like any other day for John. As an apostle, he would have been setting out to prayerfully carry out the Lord’s Will, most certainly teaching and preaching the Gospel and ever seeking to help others find their salvation in Jesus Christ.
But the Lord had special plans for John on this Lord’s Day (a term used for the 1st day of the week because it was on that day that Jesus rose from the dead). John shares that he was "worshipping in the Spirit" when he heard a loud voice behind him, demanding that he "write down what you see and send it to the seven churches…" John turns to see who is giving him the order only to witness the majesty and power of Jesus right before his eyes. The scripture tells us there were "seven golden lampstands’ with the "Son of Man" standing in the middle of them. Jesus was radiating an awesome light, "as bright as the sun in all its brilliance". His eyes were described as "bronze refined in a furnace" and from His mouth came a "sharp two-edged sword." It was quite a spectacle for John to encounter.
Question: How would you respond if you encountered such an experience with Jesus? Well John did what most of us would probably do: he "fell at His feet as dead," surely frightened beyond belief. But then something amazing happened.
In the presence of the Almighty, Powerful Son of God, John experiences His awesome grace and love. For Jesus "laid His right hand on John and spoke four words of peace saying, "Do not be afraid." He then tells John who He is: "the First and the Last…The Living One who died…The One who is alive forever and ever…the One who holds the keys of death and the grave." Jesus then directed John again to "write down what he has seen and what he will see in the future. How does John respond? Obviously, in complete obedience or else we wouldn’t have the Revelation to study from.
Question: Has the Lord Jesus ever spoken to you in a special, powerful way? How did you respond?
The truth is that Jesus wishes to speak to all of us in a special, powerful way. He wants to bless us, teach us, heal us, and love us in ways we never imagined. How can we receive Him?
First, like John, "we need to consistently be worshipping with the Spirit." Open your heart and mind to Jesus in prayer and ask Him to enter in. Request His guidance for your life and then watch what He does within you and around you so that His Will might be done.
Secondly, praise Jesus for His daily guidance. We should ever be in awe that the Son of God would want to even come into the hearts of sinners like us to do anything good and yet He does because He wishes to partner with us to further His kingdom here on earth. Like John, we should respond to being in the presence of Jesus with absolute reverence.
Finally, we need to respond to Jesus with obedience. John received orders to write down what he saw and he did, authoring the Book of Revelation. How about you? What is Jesus calling on you to do today? I pray you will open your heart and mind to receive Him, praise Him for what He intends to do in and through you, and respond to His call in absolute obedience. Jesus awaits you. Enter into fellowship with Him this day and forever more.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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