The Terrifying Majesty of Christ

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The Terrifying  Majesty of Christ

Revelation 1:12-18

“When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man.  And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One: and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”

                  The Jesus in the manger is easy to identify with and understand.  Every Christmas, we celebrate the birth of Jesus and tell the story of the baby born in a manger.  Like us, He is vulnerable and humble.  When we think of Jesus, we can grasp His humanity, for He shared the same daily struggles.  He became tired and thirsty.  In the face of death, He expressed His misgivings.  He was compassionate and relatable.  However, Jesus was more than just a human; He was also fully God, which we struggle to comprehend.  We embrace Jesus's love and compassion for those entrapped in sin. It was this Jesus that John loved and embraced.

                  However, in the Book of Revelations, John encounters Jesus fully in His righteousness and holiness.  For the first time since Jesus’ assertion, John again sees Jesus.  But now his response is surprisingly different.  During Jesus’ life on this earth, John had a special relationship grounded in love and friendship.  But when John sees Jesus in this vision, instead of embracing Jesus as a friend, he is so terrified that he collapses in fear.

                  In our view of Jesus, we want the Jesus of the manger, not the Jesus in the book of Revelation.  Throughout the book, Jesus’ majesty and righteousness are on full display.  He is returning both as the righteous judge and the redeemer of His people.  The Jesus revealed in revelation is beyond John’s ability to comprehend for fully describe.  He struggles to convey the absolute infinite glory of Christ.  All John can say is that Jesus “was like.”  John struggles to find the words to express the unparalleled glory of Christ.  He can only try to paint a picture using descriptive words that make it difficult for us to understand.  In verse 13, John describes Jesus’ regal glory by describing His clothing as a “Robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash.”  In verse 14, He uses the imagery of His head being white like white wool, which we find in the book of Proverbs as a symbol of wisdom (Prov. 16:31-33).  His penetrating insight and unmatched knowledge are described as eyes like flames of fire.  The feet of Jesus were burnished bronze, which was still bright red as they came out of the furnace, pointing to the glory and honor of Christ.  This is further captured by the description of the sound of His voice, which is comparable to the mighty roar of a powerful waterfall.  In His right hand were seven stars, which pictures His absolute control over all the heavens (vs. 16).  But the most troubling imagery we find difficult to comprehend is the sharp two-edged sword that proceeded from His mouth.  This picture points to the impending judgment that Christ will declare upon the world. Christ, in His majestic glory, is not one to trifle with.  He is not the “man upstairs.”  He is not the cosmic, lovable teddy bear.  He is the almighty God who is holy and righteous and will bring swift and terrible judgment upon those who reject Him.

                  Just when John shrinks back in absolute terror, Jesus comforts John by placing His right hand on him and telling him, “Do not be afraid.”  The terrifying righteous Jesus who brings judgment upon sin is also the loving Jesus who cares for His people.  In these opening words, we see two pictures of Jesus. We are reminded of His holiness and righteousness.  He is a God who will bring judgment upon sin.  But we also see Jesus demonstrating His love and compassion for those who accept His salvation. We must always keep these two pictures of Jesus in perfect balance.  In the words of C.S. Lewis in his classic book “The Chronicles of Narnia,” in which the lion Aslan represents Jesus, he reminds Lucy that Aslan is not safe, but he is good.  The same is true of Jesus.  The holiness of Jesus reminds us of our need for salvation and the certainty of judgment if we reject Him.  The love of Jesus reminds us that He will accept all who come to Him. As A.W. Tozer wrote, “The greatness of God rouses fear with us, but His goodness encourages us not to be afraid of Him.  To fear and not be afraid, that is the paradox of faith.” We can only learn to love Jesus when we learn to fear Jesus and we only learn to fear Jesus when we genuinely love him.

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