This post is part 2 of a series of studies on the book of Revelation..
- Part 1: The Gospel Book With a Thread of Prophecy
- Part 3: The First Beatitude in The Revelation
- Part 4: The Second Beatitude in The Revelation (a)
In the first discourse, we saw that the Gospel is more distinct in the book of Revelation than in any other book. We also saw that in every chapter, every verse and every line; Christ is revealed and therefore, Christ MUST be seen.
In this discourse, we will finish up on the first verse of the first chapter of Revelation by looking at the chain of handing the Revelation. We will start off by reading the verse:
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: KJV Revelation 1:1
The Father to Jesus Christ
As we dive into the study, I’d like us to be cognizant of the fact that the Gospel of Christ (Romans 1:16) is also the Gospel of God (Romans 1:1; 2 Cor. 11:7). Consequently, in Christ revealing Himself; he reveals the Father to us since the Revelation of Jesus Christ is, in fact, the Revelation of God. Read John 14:9.
Having noted that, it becomes clear when we read: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him (Jesus Christ),“ (Revelation 1:1). Notice the emphasis and focus directed to Jesus Christ. He receives His own Revelation, which is also the Revelation of the Father, from the Father.
Therefore, the first part of the chain is the Father giving the Revelation to Jesus Christ. As the law of Heaven is - to give, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son”, God gives and Christ takes to give.
Jesus to His Servants, the Church
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; KJV Revelation 1:1_
It should now come easy that the Servants of Christ are the Servants of God. This is true as we see Peter in his first epistle referring to believers as the Servants of God (1 Pt. 2:16) and himself as a Servant of Jesus Christ in the second (2 Pt. 1:1).
Christ’s main objective and desire is to give His Revelation to His servants. But who are the servants of Christ? This is a very precious jewel. The word servant is from the Greek word also translated as “slave”, a “bondservant”. In the letter to the Romans, we clearly get the meaning of this word. Paul introduces himself as a servant of Jesus Christ. Romans 1:1. A few chapters later, he brings out what it means to be a slave of Christ.
It is written, “his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness? Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” Romans 6:16,18 Clearly, the servants of Christ are the servants of righteousness, the same righteousness of which we already saw is Christ, the righteousness of God. He is “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS”. Jeremiah 23:6.
Therefore, the Servants of Christ are all who were once slaves of sin and they decided to obey the gospel of God thus becoming slaves of Christ. Someone may be wondering, is there not freedom in Christ? Why do you talk about slavery then? The truth is, it is slavery indeed to be a servant of Christ. But there is something about being the slave of Christ.
We know that “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are sons of God. For we have not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear” but the Spirit of adoption “and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” KJV Romans 8:14-16, 2 Cor. 3:17. There is full liberty, freedom from fear, in Christ Jesus.
Actually, we read in 1 Corinthians 7:22, “For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord’s freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ’s servant.“ We are bondservants of Christ, YES, but it’s a bondage that is itself freedom. What a powerful thought this is! Praise ye the Lord! I am a free servant, the Lord’s freeman.
Have you decided to obey Christ? Have you willed to serve Him and to follow him by surrendering your life to Him? If you are still a servant of sin, what are you waiting for? He says, “Call unto me and I will answer thee” Jer. 33:3. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matt. 11:28. You can do that just NOW, do not linger. If, on the other hand, you have answered in the affirmative then you are the servant of Christ here referred to and this Revelation is meant for you. Let us see the different parts of the chain that the Revelation took to get to us.
The Angel to Christ’s servant John
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: KJV Revelation 1:1
Since Jesus was the one given the Revelation by the Father, He is the one sending it and signifying it by His angel. It is noteworthy that when the Revelation gets to the servants of Christ, the church, it is written, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;” Revelation 2:7 While this is so, we do not see the Spirit mentioned in the first verse of Revelation. This clearly implies that the Holy Ghost, which is the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9) was involved in the handing down of the Revelation.
The question comes, at what point was the Spirit involved? We have not been left to guess at this. If we look at the other gospels, the truth will be plainly seen. In John 13:16, Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.” This means, in this sense, the Father sending the Son (John 3:16,17), the Father is greater than the Son. This is why Christ “thought it not robbery to be equal with God” and sought to do always the things that please the Father.
In the same way, Jesus in John 16:7 promised to send the Holy Ghost who is referred to as the Comforter. In this sense, Christ is greater than the Holy Ghost. One of the roles of the Spirit is, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.“ For the interest of our study, I’d like to focus on the fact that the Holy Ghost was to shew us things to come and to testify of Christ, that is, speak only that which he shall hear.
Now, if John writes, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” Revelation 3:22 then the Spirit was definitely speaking to the churches, the servants of Christ, only that which he heard from Jesus Christ. Therefore, the Spirit received the Revelation of Jesus Christ from Jesus Christ Himself. The apostle Peter affirms this by saying, “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.“ 2 Peter 1:21 “Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently…Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ was in them did signify, 1 Peter 1:10, 11. So it was with John, a prophet of God, the Spirit of Christ signified it to him.
Just to make sure the nail is in its rightful place, we need to clear up on the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the angels lest I be mistaken to insinuate that the Holy Spirit is an angel as some have supposed. It is simple. The first verse shows that Jesus sent and signified the Revelation by his angel while considering the second chapter we have seen, even from 1 Peter 1:10, 11, that it was the Holy Ghost whom Christ sent. This tells us that the Holy Ghost works through the ministration of angels. We read in Hebrews 1:7 and 14, “And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?”
Therefore, in conclusion, the Father gives the Revelation to Jesus Christ whose desire is to get it to His servants, the Church and He sends and Signifies the Revelation through the Holy Ghost and by His angel to His servant John. John is here described as the servant of God, occupying a special office, the prophets. In the closing chapters of the book we see an angel saying to John “I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets,” Revelation 22:9. This is why John receives the Revelation of Jesus Christ for “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7
John, on receiving the Revelation, he acts by the same principle of Heaven, he “takes to give”. John writes to the seven Churches. And here we are today in possession of this Revelation. The problem is, the chain is always broken off with the church but this ought not to be so. Jesus, who has all power in heaven and in earth, COMMANDS us to “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,” Matthew 28:19 Let us learn from nature, “The ocean, itself the source of all our springs and fountains, receives the streams from every land, but takes to give.” Desire of Ages page 20
The Gospel Book With a Thread Of Prophecy