The book of Revelation begins with the words, "The revelation of Jesus Christ..." (Revelation 1:1). The book reveals many events that take place at the time of the end. Still, the book's purpose is the exaltation of Jesus Christ. Secondarily, to disclose the demise of evil, the extent of demonic personalities that control fallen men and assault the followers of Christ, the judgment of the world to come, the ending of the old heaven, and earth and creation of the new.
As men have fallen into sin, we are tempted to view everything in a self-centric way. At the center of the word sin is the letter "I." Nevertheless, the Christian must resist the temptation to view God as made in our image. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:9). Sinful people understand and reflect God very poorly.
One of the many ways God differs from created men is His ability to be at perfect peace while carrying out perfect justice and judgment upon evil. Such are the events in the book of Revelation. God is shown to be merciful and kind, loving and protective, and at the same time just and wrathful to an extent, the world has not known.
In Revelation 1:2, we find this phrase, "the testimony of Jesus Christ." Many people throughout history have formulated philosophies, conjured up fanciful myths of the earth's origin and its end, but only one has spoken without error. Jesus Christ is God, and as God who cannot lie, He is the only man perfect in truth. "...in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago..." (Titus 1:2).
Therefore, from the lips of the one who cannot lie, we should pay close attention to His promises and authoritative warnings. "Blessed is the one who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and keep the things which are written in it; for the time is near." (Revelati0n 1:3)
Two thousand years have passed since the writing of the Revelation; how could the time be close? Perspective matters. To the eternal God, everything is near. To people in hell, it already seems like an eternity. To people in the presence of Christ, the time has not even passed. God is speaking from His perspective, and to those reading, His is the one that should matter.
In verse 4, we read this phrase. "Grace to you and peace from Him who is, and who was, and who is to come..." My dear readers, please do not read the words of God as though coming primarily from men. They are inspired and come from God.
Entering my house, my son was standing in the doorway of his room and said, "Dad come here; I need to show you something." I began, "Grace to you and peace from Him who is," and he stopped me. He continued, "Read verse 4." "I've been standing here for fifteen minutes, and I can't get past the fact that God is." At that moment, I realized that my son was worshipping God.
Let me suggest that you approach Revelation and all scripture in this way, as a matter of the highest worship, because God's words are to be trusted. When we don't trust a person, we don't trust what they say. For those who distrust God, their unbelief is a damning sin! Put all your weight upon God's Word, and you will never be disappointed. Neither will you have to fear the final judgment.
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