The Revelation of Jesus Christ

The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show HIs servants things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John.

Revelation 1:1

This wonderful book called “The Revelation” becomes increasingly important to us as we age. It was given to John the Apostle, and through him to the church — given in the closing years of his life, as he was exiled on the Isle of Patmos.

We would be wrong to assume that the faith of the apostles never failed, that they never faced discouragements, that all that they felt and faced was wonderful, positive, and uplifting. It clearly was not. They gave their lives for the sake of the Gospel, most experiencing early deaths by martyrdom, all experiencing persecution. But perhaps even worse, John, who tradition holds lived the longest among them original twelve, lived long enough to see the failure of the faith of many of the early converts and earlier churches.

The great concern that they had was whether their work was wasted, whether their witness given through the shedding of blood — both Christ’s and others — would survive. Success alone does not determine right. But the cry of the Moses, “Lord, establish the works of our hands” (Psalm 90:17), echoes in the heart of every servant of God.

Into this setting God spoke this revelation. In the end the victory is secure. In the final analysis God will win and all those who sincerely serve Him will rejoice. This is the encouragement of the ages. We will each in our own way experience discouragements, but we can fine strength and encouragement in this message of the ultimate victory of Christ.