A Biblical Vision, Part II: Mastering the New Testament Witness to Christ

Ses s i on 7: The Reve l at i on of John: The Consummat i on of Al l Th i ngs i n Chr i s t 221

A. Christ Jesus is the First and Last, the Living One (Rev. 1)

1. The glorified Christ reveals himself as he truly is, no longer the Jesus meek and mild of Galilee, but the cosmic Lord ready to bring all things to a close.

2. The picture of authority and victory, Rev. 1.17-18 – When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, [18] and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

3. The glorified Christ aligns himself with the God of the OT, and declares himself to be the Sovereign of all.

a. Rev. 1.8 – “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

b. Rev. 2.8 – “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life.’”

c. Cf. Isa. 48.12 – “Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.”

B. Christ Jesus is the Head of the Church, supervising his Church and her mission on earth today, (Rev. 2-3).

1. The glorified Christ is the unequivocal head of the Church: he walks among the candlesticks.