Sermon – November 22
November 22, 2015 25th Sunday after Trinity (Last Sunday of the Church Year)
Text: Revelation 1:4-8
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, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, 6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
The Return of the King
In the name of Jesus who was, who is, and who is to come, dear fellow redeemed:
In 1942 General Douglas MacArthur was ordered to withdraw from the Philippines because of Japanese offensives. He famously said, “I shall return.” When he did return in 1944, it was a time of happiness for the Filipino people who were under heavy oppression by the Japanese. At the same time, the Japanese were not looking forward to his return with American forces. It was a day which would lead to their eventual defeat.
When it comes to the return of Jesus, everything that I just told you has to be multiplied exponentially. He has promised to return, but He is no general. He is a King. The rescue and retribution He brings is not just for this life but for eternity. Today on this Last Sunday of the Church Year, we look with John upon the return of the King Jesus. Look at Him because His your King, and look at Him coming, not in humility, but in exaltation and glory.
1. Behold – Jesus is your King
The way that letter writing worked in the first century was that the sender put his name at the beginning rather that at the end. So here in verses 4-5 we have the sender revealed, but in a different order than we’re used to. We are used to seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in that order. Here we have the Father briefly described as well as the Holy Spirit, and then the Son in far greater detail. We are told who He is, what His nature is, and what He has done for us.
Jesus is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. Here we have in one verse the office of Jesus as Prophet, Priest, and King. As the Prophet He is the faithful witness, continually testifying to us in His Word. He is the Priest who sacrificed Himself on the cross, and is the firstborn from the dead – a great comfort to God’s children who will follow in that same resurrection. He is a King over all powers, second to none.
Yet with all that power, Jesus is the one who loved us He is a King of great benevolence. Kings that are filled with love and kindness are very rare on this earth. The very reason that we live in a democracy was because the king of England abused his power, and angered the colonists in America. There is the saying that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. How very true! Our system of government promotes checks and balances knowing that our nature leans toward tyranny and dictatorships.
Jesus is the exception to the rule. He has absolute power in heaven and on earth, and yet we find no corruption. We find a King who loves us. That is His very nature. It is even more amazing when you consider the objects of His love — you and I. We do not deserve to be loved by our God. We ignore Him. We cheat on Him. We lie to Him. We try to hide things from Him. We insult Him. We are ashamed of Him. We do the very opposite of what He would want us to do even though blessings are found in obedience. Who could love us? Jesus our King can and does.
This nature of His love led to the fact that He washed us from our sins in His own blood. In the ultimate act of love He shed His blood on the cross to wash us clean from the stain of sin. ‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ says the LORD, ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.’(Isaiah 1:18) Also in Revelation 7 we find this picture of believers in heaven, These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. (Rev. 7:14)
What all of our own perceived goodness, what all of our sorrow, what all of our sacrifice could not do, the blood of Jesus did. He has washed and cleansed us from sin. We find ourselves dressed and presentable to royalty, presentable to God Himself. He has made you kings and priests of God. This will all become clear on the Last Day. Look at Jesus. He is your King, using all of His power to save you.
2. Behold, Jesus is coming with glory
Even we as New Testament Christians with all the Word of God laid out before us can get lulled into forgetting that the humility of Jesus was only temporary. He rose from the dead in glory, ascended into heaven with glory, and behold, He is coming again with glory. Just as the Old Testament believers looked forward with great anticipation to the coming of the Messiah the first time, so also we eagerly anticipate His second coming.
We have before us a thumbnail sketch of this return. First of all, Behold, He is coming with clouds. We are reminded of His ascension as He disappeared into the clouds, and the angels promised: This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven. In the Gospels and the Epistles we find numerous promises of His return.
It will be the culmination of the work of Jesus. We have been delivered from sin. We have been delivered from the devil. We have been delivered from death. Yet we’re haunted by all three as long as we remain on this earth. When Jesus comes, we are delivered from the earth itself. The final victory becomes ours. That is a sure and certain promise from your Lord, who has not ever and will not ever break a promise.
Secondly, He says: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” In other words, He is the A to Z – complete and all encompassing. Jesus is unchanging. His promises remain unshaken. The same Jesus who created the world, who came in humility to redeem us, this same Jesus will come again.
Thirdly, Every eye will see Him, and they also who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. I can’t explain how that will happen. Not everybody on the earth can see the sun at one time, and yet we all will see the Son of God at one time. He will be seen as the one who was pierced. The One who bears the scars of His death, the nail prints in His hands and feet, the hole left in His side by the spear. Unbelievers, spoken of here, will mourn in His coming. In fact, they will be terrified because what may have been defiance in life will turn to sheer terror in their resurrection.
Whether you find terror or joy in that return will be determined by your relationship to Him in this life. There will be many who will be cast into the lake of fire. Those who have rejected the King will face His anger and everlasting punishment. Many will be surprised by the ferocity and the pain, having greatly underestimated the terrors of hell. Nothing on this earth can be compared to it.
Yet there are those like us – who sinners though we may be – have been washed clean in the blood of Jesus. He will take us to our final home where we enter into unparalleled joy. No doubt we have underestimated the greatness of heaven, not being able to conceive what it would like without sin and the troubles that it brings. What a wonder it will be. What a gracious King that will bring us there.
Our reply: Even so. Yes! We respond. Come Jesus. Release us from the sorrow of this earth. Take us away from the pain that surrounds us. Don’t let us become like Lot’s wife who longed for destruction over deliverance. Do not allow us to forget that You are coming to rescue us. I remember as a young boy when things were going well that it would be good if the Lord would delay His coming until after the Super Bowl, for instance. I’ve gotten past that. Each day I long more and more for departure from this earth to be in true paradise.
Behold, He is coming with glory, and you are prepared to meet Him being loved by Him, being washed in His blood, being a king and priest to God. With humbleness, repentance and joy we pray for the return of our King. Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus. Amen.