The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His servants the things that must soon take place.
Revelation 1:1
GOD gives Jesus a message for His servants through an angel to John. John faithfully records what he sees. A blessing is promised to all who read, hear, and obey because the time is near. (Berean Bible Comment)
Jesus’s Apostle John wrote (v9,10): “I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance that are in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of GOD and my testimony about Jesus. On the LORD’s day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet. . .”
Patmos is a small, rocky island in the Aegean Sea. According to commentary in the Berean Bible, “Roman records show it was used for political exiles,” and that “archaeology reveals first-century marble quarries on Patmos; exilees often labored in them.”
It’s the LORD’s day!
Apostle John doesn’t mince his words when, in his salutation, he clearly states from whom his letter comes: “Grace and peace to you from. . . Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
The Apostle is about to report events that might well require one of those movie warnings that caution, “The following may be disturbing, containing violence, etc.” But the exiled Apostle doesn’t wait until the end of his letter to give the GOOD NEWS, for he proclaims up front (1:7), “Behold, He [JESUS] is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him,” which references the prophecies of Daniel (7:13) and Zechariah (12:10).
JESUS RETURNS. Think, The Return of the King. This is the same Jesus that was put on trial for no crime except an offended religious leadership and Roman appeasement. Found guilty though innocent, Jesus was abused, ridiculed, hung on a Roman cross until dead. Jesus’s dead body was laid in a tomb until He arose, alive in his flesh body, to be seen by and spoken to by many people, for 40 days.
But wait, there’s more!
Luke reports Jesus’s disciples were gathered with Jesus, and “as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’ ” (Luke 1:9-11)
Here am I, LORD!
I await You.
I long for You.
I watch for You.
You are The King of the universe.
I await Your return.
I want to be staring in utter rapture,
gazing into Heaven,
watching You come.
Maran Ata! Come LORD!
LORD Bless, Keep, Shine. . .
Jonah’s Song 