An open letter is a letter addressing an individual or small group of people, yet nevertheless is intentionally distributed widely for a larger audience to read. In the past these were more common in local newspapers, but with the advent of the internet and social media, they have became a lot more common online for the world to read. And this is essentially what we have before us when we consider the Apostle John’s letter written from the Island of Patmos in 95 AD.
John wrote an open letter that was to be circulated and read to seven literal churches in ancient Asia Minor (or modern-day Turkey), but was intended to address the Church from that time, to our time, even until the end of time. It was written in an apocalyptic narrative literary genre that was very common when the New Testament was written, which uses visualizations and symbols to convey the history of the world, with a particular focus on the plan of salvation from a “cosmic” perspective.
John writes this letter to the Church from a place of solidarity with the hardships patiently endured by his fellow followers of Jesus who belong to His Kingdom. The church was facing difficulties as it sought to fulfill the mission of Christ and John was exiled to the lonely, rocky, treeless Isle of Patmos for proclaiming the Good News about Jesus from the word of God. It’s in this setting, near a cave, that John experiences an apocalypse, which is a revelation or unveiling, which becomes the content of his letter.
Can you see him there sitting on a large rock by himself on the Sabbath day looking over the water towards the city of Ephesus with longing in his eyes. Then suddenly John is overcome and filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. Shortly after, he hears behind him a loud voice like a trumpet telling him to write what he sees and send it to the seven churches beginning with Ephesus and ending with Laodicea. His heart pounds as he slowly turns to see who’s voice it was who spoke to him. What he sees is seven golden lampstands representing the seven churches and in their midst was One like the Son of Man, which was Jesus’ favorite name for Himself that identified Him as the divine humanlike being of Daniel 7:13. His clothing was that of the Old Testament High Priest. His hair was white like wool just like the hair of the Ancient of Days described in Daniel 7:9; signifying great wisdom and experience. His eyes were like flames of fire, which speaks to His ability to penetrate to innermost secrets of the human heart. His feet were like bronze, symbolizing stability and strength, and the sound of His voice were like many waters, which, like the trumpet, represented the powerful voice of God. Jesus is also depicted as having a sharp sword coming out of His mouth, which represents the word of God. John also sees His face as if it were shining with the brilliant light of the sun. It is abundantly clear to John that the One whose voice he heard and now sees is the resurrected, highly exalted and glorified Christ, who possess all the characteristics, authority and prerogatives of God Almighty!
Such a revelation of Jesus Christ as this was so overwhelming and overpowering, that it was almost too much for John to handle. Yet it was this very revelation that Jesus chose to give him that was the very thing the church needed conveyed to them in a letter. And as we consider where we find ourselves today as a church, could it be that how Jesus is revealed in this letter is what He knows we need today? The probing question we face today is: What revelation of Jesus Christ do we need as we move forward to the end? It’s with open hearts willing to hear what the Spirit says to the church that we can discover the answer to this question as we enter the story beginning in verse Revelation 1:17…
“And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.”
Revelation 1:17 NKJV
This reaction of John and Jesus’ response is similar to the reaction he, Peter and James had to Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration where Jesus was transfigured before them as the glorified Messiah in Matthew 17:1-8. And it is also reminiscent of the reaction of Judas, the armed detachment of troops and mob had as Jesus stepped forward, declared Himself the “I Am” as they sought to arrest Him in the garden of Gethsemane in John 18:1-6. In both cases people fell down before Jesus as though dead just as if before the awesome presence of Yahweh. The stunningly surprising thing is that Jesus stretches forth His right hand, signifying His favor, and tells John what He often said during His earthly ministry, “Do not be afraid” or “Stop being afraid”. This is the same thing He says to us as we read this letter today. He says, “I am the first and the last”, which is a repeat of what the Lord Almighty says in verse 8, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End”. Revelation 1:8 NKJV. John’s letter to us will be needed as we move forward to the end, because it reveals…
JESUS CHRIST IS THE BEGINNING AND END OF THE STORY.
It’s like the Greek letters of the Alphabet. Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet and Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet. It’s as if Jesus is saying He is the A to the Z. So if you look to the past at the beginning of the story, He was there. If you look up until the present, He is here. And if you look forward into the future, He will be there in the end. Past, present or future, He is there with you and He is there for you! And from the beginning to the end of the story He will be victorious over the Enemy on behalf of you!
This revelation of Jesus Christ as the beginning and end of the story should also remind you of the picture we have of Him in Hebrews 12:2, which says, “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…” Hebrews 12:2a NKJV. He’s not just the beginning and the end of human story, but our church’s story and your personal story. And He wants you to trust Him every step of the way, for what He started He will also finish.
You see what Jesus is trying to get across to us with this cosmic revelation of Himself, past, present and future, is that He is faithful. He is there for us in whatever we stand in need of. As Dr. Elizabeth Talbot says, commenting in this same passage, “I can assure you that any problem you are facing today is covered by Jesus, whose astounding picture we just discovered, whether your problem starts with an A or a Z or any other letter in between.” Elizabeth Talbot, Revelation: The Fifth Gospel, P. 18.
And now Jesus continues to expound on His revelation in John’s letter beginning in verse 18…