David Bahn – Reflections

Revelation 1:4-7

To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.

The Coastline of Kavala (near Ephesus, one of the seven churches of Revelation)

Oswald Hoffmann, former speaker of The Lutheran Hour radio program told a joke that I’ve retold many times, and always to a good laugh. The punchline is, “I’m fine, I’m just fine!” If you really want to read the whole joke you can see it here. Suffice it to say, context is everything.
That’s so true if we are to understand the book of Revelation properly. The first thing to remember is that this revelation was given to John during a time of persecution of the Christian church, and of John himself. Interpret this whole book with John’s exile because of his testimony to Jesus Christ, and the dangers everyday Christians were experiencing firmly in mind. You will gain a much better read on what God was actually saying.
As important as the milieu of John’s day is, the words at the beginning of this book are vitally important. John offers “grace and peace.” This phrase is more than a formalistic greeting at the beginning of a letter. This is a deep-felt expression of good will toward those who would read these words. These are the words of a close loved one with your best interests at heart.
That’s not always easy to hear, and sometimes we rebel at challenging words even when spoken out of deep pure love. But if we are to hear what is going to be offered in the coming pages, we must keep grace and peace in mind.
God has incredibly pure and true good will toward us. He wishes us deep and profound peace. If we are to be disturbed, it is so that we will move to a better place and experience a better life. Sometimes that requires that we be disturbed. But the disturbance is akin to being violently awakened from a peaceful deep sleep because the house is on fire and unless we are roused, we will perish in the flames.
God’s words to and through John in this Revelation of Jesus Christ are light and life. They come from the One who rules over all, who also died for all, who also has the keys to life and death. He has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us to be a kingdom of priests to serve our God and Father. This is a great blessing and profound responsibility. We ready ourselves for God’s revelation. We need to know these things. We also need to take to heart his call to vigilance.