I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet.  Revelation 1:10

The plot of Revelation is to reveal Jesus. Here is the author of this book – Jesus, glorified Lord, and here is the subject of the book – Jesus glorified Lord, UNVEILED.

Apocalypse means the revelation of what took place in the Incarnation hidden in a humble form. –Eugene Peterson

What revelation allows us to see is the deity inside the humanity. Not two, but one person. If you take away the swaddling clothes you can see the eternal king in the holy child, but not everyone could see. But many did…Simeon, John the Baptist, Bartimaues, Joseph of Arimathea

That little baby – I am not awestruck before that little baby, I don’t believe anybody fell on their faces before that little baby – Simeon came the closest, but I certainly do not believe that the little Jesus running around had a halo. Only at times when they saw a miracle or if you think back to his words spoken on the shores, marketplace, or on the temple grounds no wonder people were astonished at his teaching, they were a drawn sword coming out of his mouth.

He is not a pale Galliean, but a towering and furious figure who will not be managed. – Tom Howard

He talked like a king and acted like a slave. He adopted the title son of man, the most glorious of titles and yet lived a menial lifestyle. He was a vagabond, a wanderer, drifter, nomad. Jesus assimilated his destiny into his dailiness of ordinary life.

You cant drift on Jesus.  John’s vision is describing the preeminence of his being the Lord God, God of gods, King of kings, Lord of lords, Man of men. Creator of creation, Savior of the world. Be held by him, be arrested, don’t divert your attention for one moment.

Don’t let your faith flat-line, don’t let the church shortchange the Christ for a better life message.  Don’t let your denomination let you sink to the lowest common denominator about who Jesus is or what he wants to do in your life.  Do not dose off, don’t just get religion, don’t just hang out with disciples without a vibrant, bell ringing Jesus.

Jesus is not the MVP of all those enshrined in the religious hall of fame of the world. He does not take his place as the most honored among, buddah, moses, muhammed, joseph smith, sun myung moon, the dalai lama, confuscious.

Yes we can coexist on earth as people, but what cannot coexist is the gods of the world’s religions and the Christ. You can have as many gods as you desire and you can call all of them or one of them by the same name, BUT the creed of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church declares, We believe in ONE Lord, Jesus Christ.

The very first time you hear the sound of a trumpet in a significant way is in Exodus 19. It was a sound like that of a trumpet that called them into the presence of God, the whole company of the Israel is gathered at the foot of Mt Sinai as it quaked with the presence of God.

A great trumpet sounded and called all the people to hear the words of their covenant God speaking to them. It is significant that the unveiling of the New Covenant is accompanied by a voice that sounds like a trumpet. Revelation is a call to the whole covenant people of the New Testament. – Come and hear the words of the New Covenant.

To grasp this requires faith and to live it requires courage. I call you to be enraptured in the mystery, vision, whirlwind, the dream of Christ Jesus the Lord. Quit treating Jesus like the Snuggle teddy bear, he is a Montana grizzly.

The trumpet is a call to worship…to halt, heed, hear and hail. To come and fall at his feet and worship him.

What was guessed at is now known in detail. As John comes he turns and he sees a vision of Jesus.  There is no doubt about that as He identifies Himself, I am the First and the Last, I was dead, I am alive. John saw Jesus, but what he saw was beyond words and the only way he could describe what he saw was by the symbolism by which Jesus chose to present Himself.

This full disclosure of Christ here in chapter 1 gets parceled out to each of the seven churches. Christ remains incarnationally connected to humanity in his ascended deity in and through the church.  The church doesn’t need you, you need the Church. The body of believers, the fellowship of followers, the community of the covenant, the table of his presence…

Advent 2 – 2014

To listen to the message please visit my post on December 7 at:  https://www.facebook.com/michael.welchert