In Revelation, the Lord Jesus Christ lists some of His names, and oh, what a list it is! There are tremendous blessings to those who understand.
In Revelation 1:8 the Lord Jesus Christ says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
YES! Jesus encapsulates His person in one mighty sentence.
Alpha—first letter of the Greek alphabet, which was the common language spoken during His first coming to earth.
He is first—above all else, therefore we should seek Him first. (A good exercise would be to list all of His many firsts.)
Alpha—as the dominant over a particular group. In this case, as in creator of the world group of humanity, and all living things.
Alpha as in the first (and typically brightest) star in a constellation. Ties back to one of His names—‘the bright and morning star’ = the most holy and powerful light in all creation. (Revelation 2:28)
Omega. The 24th and last letter of the Greek alphabet.
Omega as the last (or 24th) star in a constellation. The Lord Jesus Christ is the first and last star. He who created stars. Omega also ties into the 24 elders (those interesting saints) that sit before the throne of God in Revelation.
He who is, and who was, and who is to come. The ALMIGHTY Lion of Judah who will reign on David’s throne for 1000 years after He returns! (Revelation 5:5)
The second name listing offers us assurance as He explains Who He is, and that we can trust His promises. Hallelujah!
“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 of death and of Hades.” Revelation 1:17-18
Foremost on His mind is to reassure His beloved. Reminding us never to fear, as He explains that He was there at the beginning, hovering over the void before speaking creation into existence. And He is alive right now, and will be at the end—when He gathers to Him (into everlasting life) all of His believers—who will be resurrected—and who will not die the second death, but will reign with Him forever.
Jesus Christ was killed as the sacrificial Lamb who took our sins away. For three days He went down into hell and took back all the keys to life. Satan thought he’d conquered the Son of God, but the Father gave Christ resurrection authority! The Lord Jesus Christ defeated death, removing it from Satan’s grasp, so he can never use it against His believers—His chosen. Jesus rose up out of that grave as the Living Son of God and for 40 days He dwelt among His beloved disciples, before they witnessed God bring Him home.
Wow! Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come! (Revelation 4:8)
In the first four chapters of Revelation the Lord gives John a clear vision of what was, what is, and what will come. Jesus repeatedly commanded John to write “he who has an ear, let him hear…” warning the reader to listen and absorb what He’s saying. Jesus understood the times—past, and present to John’s time, knowing people would be verbally taught about Him in synagogue, and in the New Testament church. People heard through teaching, since they did not have access to the scrolls.
But Jesus knew the future, too—and He prefers that we learn about Him through our ears also—but today the learning process is reversed.
We have abundant access to the texts, while very few clergy teach Revelation from their modern-day pulpits. So we’re forced to read—rather than hear—scripture.
In Revelation 1:3 Jesus KNEW this book would not be taught from our pulpits, and we’d have to read it instead. Therefore, He took care of this predicament by offering a promise. “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophesy, and heed the things which are written in it, for the time is near.”
He always takes care of us—past, present, and future. With all this in mind, in Revelation 2:1 the Lord Jesus Christ deepens our understanding of who He is with the names He uses to identify Himself…
“…The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands…”
In Revelation 2:7 Jesus identifies Himself as “…the Spirit…”
Okay. What, or who are the seven stars? And golden lampstands…what do they represent?
Flip back to Revelation 1:20 where Jesus solves that mystery for us. “As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands; the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.”
Jesus chose seven specific churches. Ones that John would have been familiar with—Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.
Understand, there were many other churches during that time, but Jesus specifically chose these seven. Over these churches He placed seven of His angels, and He walked among them.
These seven churches categorize the different types of churches in existence today, and we should take heed to study them carefully. Along with many other notable lessons Jesus speaks about in the first four chapters of Revelation, He also provides personal identifiers regarding Who He is.
There is no other who holds those angels in His right hand; He alone is the creator of those angels. He controls these powerful, servant-oriented beings. Only He offers them as support for His will to each of the seven churches.
And His Spirit walks among them.
Jesus, the Son of God, the Almighty provides two ways (the angels and Himself) to assist churches today—to help them stay on track. And yet, five of the seven churches fail to remain in Him—some more severely than others. But the lessons are there to be heeded and corrected.
The One who holds the seven stars and walks among the churches is the only One who can save the modern church—His chosen, His believers. He provides the answers.
The church has to choose who they will listen to.
Amen.
