ESOCS Devotional 24 April 2023
MEMORY VERSE: “I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.” Revelation 1:18
TEXT: REVELATION 1:1-18
This is] the revelation of Jesus Christ [His unveiling of the divine mysteries]. God gave it to Him to disclose and make known to His bond servants certain things which must shortly and speedily come to pass [a]in their entirety. And He sent and communicated it through His angel (messenger) to His bond servant John,
2 Who has testified to and vouched for all that he saw [[b]in his visions], the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed (happy, [c]to be envied) is the man who reads aloud [in the assemblies] the word of this prophecy; and blessed (happy, [d]to be envied) are those who hear [it read] and who keep themselves true to the things which are written in it [heeding them and laying them to heart], for the time [for them to be fulfilled] is near.
4 John to the seven assemblies (churches) that are in Asia: May grace (God’s unmerited favor) be granted to you and spiritual peace ([e]the peace of Christ’s kingdom) from Him Who is and Who was and Who is to come, and from the seven Spirits [[f]the sevenfold Holy Spirit] before His throne,
5 And from Jesus Christ the faithful and trustworthy Witness, the Firstborn of the dead [first to be brought back to life] and the Prince (Ruler) of the kings of the earth. To Him Who [g]ever loves us and has [h]once [for all] loosed and freed us from our sins by His own blood,
6 And formed us into a kingdom (a royal race), priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the power and the majesty and the dominion throughout the ages and forever and ever. Amen (so be it).
7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth shall gaze upon Him and beat their breasts and mourn and lament over Him. Even so [must it be]. Amen (so be it).
8 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, says the Lord God, He Who is and Who was and Who is to come, the Almighty (the Ruler of all).
9 I, John, your brother and companion (sharer and participator) with you in the tribulation and kingdom and patient endurance [which are] in Jesus Christ, was on the isle called Patmos, [banished] on account of [my witnessing to] the Word of God and the testimony (the proof, the evidence) for Jesus Christ.
10 I was in the Spirit [rapt in His power] on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a great voice like the calling of a [i]war trumpet,
11 Saying, I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last. Write promptly what you see (your vision) in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia—to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.
12 Then I turned to see [whose was] the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands,
13 And in the midst of the lampstands [One] like a Son of Man, clothed with a robe which reached to His feet and with a girdle of gold about His breast.
14 His head and His hair were white like white wool, [as white] as snow, and His eyes [flashed] like a flame of fire.
15 His feet glowed like burnished (bright) bronze as it is refined in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters.
16 In His right hand He held seven stars, and from His mouth there came forth a sharp two-edged sword, and His face was like the sun shining in full power at midday.
17 When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as if dead. But He laid His right hand on me and said, Do not be afraid! I am the First and the Last,
18 And the Ever-living One [I am living in the eternity of the eternities]. I died, but see, I am alive forevermore; and I possess the keys of death and Hades (the realm of the dead).
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
In this text, John lays bare the glorious heritage and life the Christian has been called to and is privileged to live. He tells of the great love of God towards his children and the blessing He has bestowed on us manifesting first in freeing His children from sin and its consequences. This is a basic need for man if he is to live victoriously. For sin enslaves and destroys the soul. It ties man to the power of Satan giving Satan rule over him. But in freeing man from sin man is liberated from the power of Satan and at the same time from the consequence of sin and eternal separation from God spent in hell. God did this through the death of our Savior Jesus Christ who offered Himself as a sacrifice for the redemption of all who believe.
We also see in this text the life God has prepared for all who are redeemed. Verse 6 shows us that life. It says they have been made a kingdom of priests to serve God. Hence, all believers are priests unto God to offer to God an acceptable sacrifice not with bulls and rams but with a life that is sanctified unto Him.
We get a glimpse of the glorious image of Christ: the One who is our Savior, our Redeemer, our Shepherd, our Advocate, and Intercessor; the One in whose blood we overcome Satan and his agents; in whom we have freedom and in whom all things have changed for us for our good. He is dressed in a garment reaching down His feet and girded with a golden girdle. He has hairs like wool as white as snow and eyes like a flame of fire; with feet like fine brass as if they burned in a furnace and His voice like the sound of many waters. His countenance is like the sun shining in full strength.
Testifying of himself, He said, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, which is, which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” He said further: “I am he that liveth and was dead; and behold I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.”
This is our Lord and Savior.
- What do you consider your greatest asset as a believer?
- Imagining in your mind Jesus as described in this text, write down your impression.
- Father, we thank you for the great grace bestowed on us. For your Son Jesus Christ whom you gave for us. Give us the grace to live as you have called us to live and may your name be glorified
FURTHER READING: Exodus 15:13-21; Isaiah 26:20-end; Luke 24:1-12; 1 Peter 1:1-13
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ESOCS Devotional 24 April 2023
