God is a Trinity in that He is One God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In his book, Delighting in the Trinity, Michael Reeves wrote of the Trinity: “If the Trinity were something we could shave off God, we would not be relieving him of some irksome weight; we would be shearing him of precisely what is so delightful about him. For God is triune, and it is as triune that he is so good and desirable.”[1] Fed Sanders in his book, The Deep Things of God, wrote:
God is eternally Trinity, because triunity belongs to his very nature. Things like creation and redemption are things God does, and he would still be God if he had not done them. But Trinity is who God is, and without being the Trinity, he would not be God. God minus creation would still be God, but God minus Father, Son, and Holy Spirit would not be God. So when we praise God for being our creator and redeemer, we are praising him for what he does. But behind what God does is the greater glory of who he is: behind his act is his being.[2]
To appreciate the glory of the King who was born on the first Christmas, you must understand what it is that sets the God of the Bible apart from every cult and religion is that the God in the Bible is One God in Three (Trinity) Persons. What this means is that there was never a time when Jesus was created because there was never a time when He was not the Son.
What happened that never happened before and never will happen again is in the angel’s announcement to Mary: “…behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus” (Luke 1:31)? What happened that was new was God the Son took on human flesh by being conceived in the womb of a virgin. What was new was that God the Son also became the Son of Mary (Luke 1:31, 35). Represented in the Christ Child was, “the union of undiminished deity and perfect humanity forever in one person.”
The message of advent is simply this: The plan was always for a King to reign in Israel over all the nations. In passages like Isaiah 44:6-8, Yahweh was to be King over Israel. We are told in verse 6, “This is what Yahweh says, He who is the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of armies: I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me.” In 2 Samuel 7:13, we read of how king David was promised that a very human descendant of his would reign as king forever: “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” Both Isaiah 44:6-8 and 2 Samuel 7:13 come together in the promise of Isaiah 9:6-7,
For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6–7)
The glorious reality of the Trinity is that the Son was always the King of Isaiah 44 and Isaiah 9, and the incarnation allowed Him to be all of Isaiah 44:6-8 and Isaiah 9:6-7 while at the same time becoming the Son of David (2 Sam. 7:8-17) through the virgin birth (Luke 1:26-38).
Jesus is the Means for Our Redemption (vv. 4-8)
The book of Revelation was written to suffering Christians who needed encouragement. There was much that John suffered because of his association with Jesus, and although he most likely was not martyred for his faith, many of his friends were.
If you believe that the purpose of the book of Revelation is primarily about how the world will end, you have missed the point of the book entirely. We are told why it was written in its opening verses: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bondservants, the things which must soon take place…” (v. 1). When you are in a season of long-term suffering, it is easy to grow weary believing that there will be no end to such suffering. The book of Revelation was written to encourage suffering Christians that their suffering had an expiration date while their salvation would remain “nonperishable.”
Before we are told about what is coming, John first tells us what has already happened. In just three short verses, the apostle lists for us seven reasons why we can be confident that our suffering is not how our story will end:
John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood—and He made us into a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (Rev. 1:4–6)
The grace and peace of verse 4 is from three persons. The One, “who is, and who is to come…” is God the Father, the “seven spirits” is a reference to the Holy Spirit,[3] and, the grace and peace that is for the Christian is from Jesus Christ. Seven is an important number in the Bible, especially in the book of Revelation and its use is symbolic of fullness. In these opening verses, John lists seven ways Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection benefits the Christian:
- Jesus is a faithful witness in the way He lived, died, and rose from the grave. His life is our example, and we are to look to Him as we, “…run with endurance the race that is set before us… looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfector of the faith (Heb. 12:1-2).
- Jesus is the first born of the dead in that he suffered and died, but He did not stay dead. Jesus conquered death, which means that our death will eventually lead to a resurrection too.
- Jesus is the ruler of the kings of the earth in that He is sovereign over all earthly powers to the point that no king can destroy what Jesus loves and treasures.
- Jesus loves us and His love for His Church is not fleeting, fragile, or conditional.
- Jesus released us from our sins by His blood in that He shed His blood on a cross of wood by becoming a curse for us to free us from the curse of sin in perpetuity.
- Jesus made us into a kingdom in that the citizenship of the Christian is in the realm of Jesus’ kingdom.
- Jesus made us into priests who were once alienated from God, are now reconciled to God, and called to participate in the mission of God as His ambassadors.
Because God the Father so loved the world, He sent Jesus the Son who completed all that was needed for our redemption, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Because we are recipients of the first advent of Christ’s coming, we now long for the second advent of His coming which, according to verses 8-9 is as good as done: “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen. ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty’” (Rev. 1:7–8).
This is why the angel was able to announce to lowly shepherds that the birth of Jesus was good news: “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10–11). So, we rejoice with the hymn writer who wrote of Jesus:
He makes the rebel a priest and a king,
He has bought us and taught us this new song to sing:
Unto Him who has loved us and washed us from sin,
Unto Him be the glory forever. Amen.[4]
Jesus is the Glory of Our Redemption (vv. 9-16)
In Revelation 1:9-16, John sees the glory of the One who was laid in a manger on the first Christmas, what he lists for us are nine characteristics of Jesus’ glory that come together in Him being fully God and fully man—just as the number 7 symbolizes fullness or completeness, the number 9 symbolizes perfection. Here are the nine things John sees in a Jesus who, because of the incarnation now is fully God and fully Man for the rest of eternity:
- Jesus stands in the middle of the seven lampstands. The lampstand John sees was like the menorah used in Solomon’s temple that symbolized the seven days of creation. It was one lampstand with seven lamps. Remember that seven symbolizes fullness; the seven churches are both seven literal churches that symbolize the global Church. Jesus is both Lord of the Church and the center of the Church because He purchased her with His blood. He is the groom, and the Church is His Bride. In the manger was laid the groom of the Church!
- Jesus is clothed in a robe wearing a golden sash. The clothing Jesus is wearing when John sees Him is that of both a High Priest and a King. Jesus stands in the midst of His Church as the King and He stands serving as the High Priest whose perfect sacrifice was Himself for the atonement for sins, sins we are guilty of. The one laid in a manger was born to die for sinners: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree…”’ (Gal. 3:13).
- Jesus’ head and hair are white like white wool. Jesus’s head and hair are white because before He was born in flesh, he was for all eternity the Ancient of Days spoken of by the prophet Daniel, “I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head like pure wool…” (Dan. 7:9). The one laid in a manger is the Ancient of Days who stands as the groom, High Priest of His Church because He is Him who is, “Holy, holy, holy…”
- Jesus’ eyes are like a flame of fire. What is the point? Christian, you are the Church, and although you may be weary and tired… the Groom of the Church does not grow weary or tired! The One laid in a manger sees you and sees all that is wrong in the world; His eyes are like a flame of fire because the judgment He will bring will make all that is wrong in our world right and good, for when He comes, he will come to make His blessings flow as far as the curse is found.”
- Jesus’ feet are like burnished and glowing bronze. His feet of bronze symbolize the strength of Jesus as both King and Savior who will crush His enemies, of which the first enemy was death. He is Lord of His Church who stands in the midst of His Bride which means that NO ONE can remove His lampstands from Him; the One whose feet are like burnished bronze is He who declared: “My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:27–28).
- Jesus’ voice is like the sound of many waters. Like the continuous waves of the ocean or the roar of Niagara Falls to the tenth power… the cries of the infant child from Mary’s womb on the first Christmas to the triumphant cry from the Cross: “It is finished!” is the voice of the Ancient of Days; when He speaks creation happens, demons flee, the lame walk, the sick are cured, and the dead become the living! The voice that John heard is the voice of omnipotent power and absolute authority.
- Jesus holds in His right hand the seven stars. Whoever or whatever the seven stars are, the point is that Jesus holds them in His right hand, which is the hand of strength. The point is that there is only One King of kings and One Lord of lords; it was a reminder that although Rome had her emperor who sentenced John to Patmos, there is only One true Sovereign! Jesus is sovereign over empires, He is sovereign over the cosmos, He is sovereign over life and death! The One laid in the manger, is the One, “…before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Col. 1:17).
- From Jesus’ mouth comes a sharp two-edged sword. The sharp two-edged sword is symbolic of the life and power of Christ’s Word. What comes out of the mouth of King Jesus is, “living and active, and sharper than any two-edge sword…” (Heb. 4:12). Philip Hughes said of the sword John saw come out of Jesus’ mouth: “The sword which is the Lord’s word has two edges [so] it never fails to cut. If it does not cut with the edge of salvation, it cuts with the edge of condemnation; for the word of redemption to all who believe is at the same time the word of destruction to those who refuse to believe.”[5]
- Jesus’ face is like the sun shining in its strength. In the face of Christ, John sees what we must see in Jesus: To have Him shine upon you as your savior and redeemer who was born to live the life you could never live to die a death that you deserved to die… is to have the face of God shine upon you. In the face of Jesus is “the union of undiminished deity and perfect humanity forever in one person.”
What John saw in Revelation 1:4-18 was, is, and forever will remain the only version of Jesus that exists. The Jesus that John saw and experienced was not a Jesus who became the Son of God through the virgin birth, but He has always been the Son of God! It is this Jesus the prophet Jeremiah wrote about hundreds of years before the Christ Child was laid in a manger on the first Christmas: “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. “In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will live securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘Yahweh Our Righteousness.’” (Jer. 23:5–6). To worship any other Jesus besides this Jesus is to embrace a version of Jesus who cannot save!
Conclusion: Jesus is the Goal of Our Redemption (vv. 17-18)
After John experiences this Jesus, we are told that he, “…fell at His feet like a dead man.” I am not sure if that means John had a heart attack or what, but what I do know is that Jesus placed his right hand on the apostle and said something that should now be clearer to you than when you first arrived this morning: “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys to death and of Hades” (vv. 17-18).
What does all this mean? What it means is this: the child born to Mary was, is, and forever will be fully God and fully Man who was born to save sinners like you and me. The Jesus of Revelation 1:4-18 took on human flesh and was born on the very first Christmas. If the manger could speak to all in attendance as it held the One identified as the Ancient of Days, the Prince of Peace, and “Yahweh our Righteousness” it would say, “If you were a hundred times worse than you are. Your sins would be no match for His mercy.”[6]
Amen.
