Revelations from Revelation 5: chapter 1, verse 1b

So far, we've learned that God gave a revelation to Jesus to give to Jesus' servants concerning theology and historical events that would impact their lives. The identity of the servants will be revealed in v. 4, so I will save my comments about The Revelation's audience.

In the second half of v. 1 ESV, we read, "He (Jesus) made it (the revelation) known by sending his angel to his servant John." There are two issues I want to address, and then ask two somewhat reflective questions.

First, the revelation belongs to Jesus who is using an angelic mediator. The Bible doesn't ever give us a concise description of the purpose, nature, or roles of angels. However, we can draw a few ideas based on Biblical accounts of angelic activity.

In the Old Testament, angels are inseparably linked to the will of God. In fact, while reading through angelic oracles, astute readers may notice the beings switching between third person (God says...) and first person (I say...) interchangeably. Thus, the reader is unsure whether the angel is speaking on behalf of God, or if the heavenly creature is an actual appearance of Yahweh Himself (theophany, a God sighting). In Exodus 3, for example, we're told that an angel of the Lord appeared to Moses through a burning bush, yet the "angel" speaks as if he IS God. And, New Testament angelic appearances follow this trend.

Questions are often raised about the role of angels after Pentecost, when the Church received God's Holy Spirit. Two points are clear. First, angelic activity persists even throughout Acts* (Peter is rescued from prison by the angel of the Lord in Acts 12), so one would certainly be mistaken to say that angelic activity has ceased in the Church age. Second, angels appear to work hand-in-hand with the Spirit in ways difficult to comprehend. We know, for instance, that heavenly beings play some role in salvation, similar to that of the Spirit (Heb 1:12). And Revelation 1:1 clarifies that angels work as mediators for Jesus in the same way they mediated for Yahweh in the Old Testament.

The second issue within v. 1b is the name John. This name appears several times throughout the Revelation, although the only information given to the reader comes for 1:9. There, John describes himself as "your brother and partner," who is currently, "on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus." Several other inferences are often drawn about John's identity based upon the remainder of the book. He is likely a Jewish Christian considering his familiarity with the Old Testament. Scholars also speculate that he personally had good standing with the churches of Asia Minor who are addressed in chapters 2-3. Another inference is that the author is not classically trained in Koine Greek, considering that he butchers syntax often in The Revelation.

Obviously, a majority of conservative scholars consider the beloved apostle John as the author of not only a Gospel and three epistles, but also this final New Testament book. John was Jewish, an important Church father familiar with several churches, and an "unschooled, ordinary" man (Acts 4:13), who would have struggled writing a document in Greek while imprisoned on the island Patmos. Consequently, some scholars date the book in the 60's, probably during Nero's reign which was a time of heightened persecution.

On the other hand, a large number of scholars date the book to 95 A. D. during Emperor Domitian's reign, which slightly affects various interpretations. Also, the apostle John would then be a highly unlikely potential author. Yet, this possibility should not prevent readers from approaching The Revelation as an inspired work of scripture.

Finally, I want to ask two questions to allow personal reflection. First, does God still speak to his servants in such dynamic, dare I say charismatic, ways? I would challenge you to put away your 21st century, enlightened, American world-view and at least allow the possibility of Christian visionary experiences. Maybe you and I will never experience a revelation of our own, but is it possible that God speaks dynamically to even a handful of his millions of followers every year? If He does, is it possible that the visions are given to non-American Christians who don't know that educated people don't believe God uses visions toda? If God is speaking via visionary experience to people I know, is it possible that they simply don't mention it, so they don't have to hear me tell them they're crazy?

Second, what would I do with such a vision? Would I be willing to alter my life based on such a thing? Or would I dismiss it as a day dream? How mentally unstable would I be willing to look to communicate the truths of God? I'm not sure I like the answers to these questions, but I consider John's obedience in writing The Revelation as a challenge to be a faithful communicator of all that gives God glory.

I will attempt to work through vv. 2-3 next post.

*See Acts 5:19; 8:26, 29, 39; 10:3, 7, 22; 11:13; 12:6-11, 23; 27:23