Crescent Hill Baptist Church
Crescent Hill Baptist Church
Louisville, Kentucky
Reign of Christ Sunday
November 26, 2006
W. Gregory Pope
CHRIST THE CENTER
Revelation 1:1-20
(I am indebted to Eugene Peterson and his book Reversed Thunder: The Revelation of John and the Praying Imagination, HarperCollins, 1988, for many of the basic ideas in this sermon.)
Today is the last Sunday in the Christian Calendar. We begin a new year next week with the First Sunday of Advent. This last Sunday we call “Reign of Christ” or “Christ the King” Sunday. It teaches us that having made the year-long journey through the birth and life, death and resurrection of Christ and the early days of the church, that Christ is at the Center of the whole story, the whole created world, really.
On this “Reign of Christ” Sunday, the lectionary offers us the opening words of the Book of Revelation. During the season of Easter next spring I am planning to take on the daring task of preaching a series of sermons from the Book of Revelation. In the opening words of the book we read that this is “the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Which is actually the title of the book in the original Greek. This revelation is about Jesus Christ and it comes from Jesus Christ. He is both the content and the means of the revelation. Jesus Christ is the way through which God is revealed to us. Whatever else the Book of Revelation is, it is first of all a proclamation centered in Jesus Christ.
So what could be more fitting on this “Reign of Christ” Sunday than to reflect upon the opening words of the Book of Revelation. Words that give us quite an astonishing image of Jesus - who he is and what he does. The Revelation reveals a Christ who is the Center of everything and at the Center of everything. And as Yeats put it, if this “centre cannot hold / Mere anarchy is loosed on the world.” (William Butler Yeats, “Second Coming,” The Collected Poems of W. B. Yeats, Macmillan Co., 1959, 184)
The task of keeping Christ as Center is continually difficult - in the church and in our lives. Other things elbow their way to the front: the golden rule, the various doctrines of atonement, the Ten Commandments, Paul’s teachings on justification, different understandings of the Trinity, trying to be a good person, sin and righteousness - important things but not central things. Christ is Center.
The Book of Revelation keeps Christ at the Center. One of the great themes of the book is that Christ reigns especially in the midst of our suffering. The church to whom this book was written was a suffering, persecuted church. And John the pastor writes to tell them that Christ is with them and that together they will triumph. But who is this Christ at the center?
Faithful Witness, Firstborn of the Dead, Ruler of the Kings of the Earth
John describes him first as the faithful witness. Jesus himself endured persecution and was faithful and so serves as an inspiring example to suffering and persecuted Christians.
John then says Jesus is the firstborn of the dead. He is risen. And his resurrection comforts us, especially in the face of death, with the hope that someday we too shall rise.
Third, John tells us that Jesus is the ruler of the kings of the earth. Jesus reigns over all the kingdoms of the world. It is a reign of love that frees us from our sin. And we have been made a part of his kingdom and will be priests together with him. More about kingdoms later.
The fullness of this reign will come when Jesus returns coming on the clouds, a symbolic rather than a literal description of how Jesus will return. A way of saying he will be coming with the fullness of God’s presence. And every eye will see him.
John, with the eye of his imagination, sees a vision, an image of Jesus. He first hears a voice that tells him to write what he sees and to send it to seven churches. John turns to “see the voice.” And the first things he sees are seven lampstands which he will be told are the seven churches to whom Christ will speak in chapters two and three.
Son of Man
In the midst of the lampstands, John sees a mysterious human figure, “one like a son of man.” The phrase “son of man” originates in the vision of Daniel from the Hebrew scriptures.
For John, Jesus takes on this role. And rightfully so. “Son of man” is the phrase Jesus used most in describing himself. It is sometimes translated “the human one.” While it is a humble way for Jesus to speak of himself, we find when we read the book of Daniel that it is quite a strong image. Daniel writes:
I saw in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
And to him was given dominion
and glory and kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed. (7:13-14)
“Son of Man” is quite a glorious and powerful figure. He is not, as Thomas Howard once put it, “a pale Galilean, but a towering and furious figure who will not be managed.” (Thomas Howard, Christ the Tiger, J. B. Lippincott Co., 1967, 10)
But with such great stature let us not forget the humble site of his birth was a manger and the suffering palace of his coronation was a cross. (Peterson, 33)
Jesus took perhaps the most glorious image available to him and joined it with the most menial of life-styles in his culture. He talked like a king and acted like a slave. He was Son of Man “given dominion and glory and kingdom,” and he was completely at home in the common, the ordinary, the everyday. The common, ordinary everyday he made splendid with grace, healing, peace, and blessing (Peterson, 30-31)
The task of faith then, for those who agree to be his disciples, is to immerse ourselves in the teachings of Jesus and the life he lived - cross-bearing, self-denial, suffering and death, believing that everything we do and say is part of the victorious rule of God’s kingdom in this world.
We are then given a description of this figure John sees. Some of the details we will find echoed in the letters to the seven churches in chapters two and three.
Clothing
The vision of Christ begins with a description of his clothing: “a long robe with a golden sash across his chest.” Before we know what the Son of Man looks like, we know what he does. Clothing defines role. He vests with the garment prescribed for Aaron in his priestly work (Exodus 29:5). The Son of Man is a priest. (Peterson, 33)
A priest is a bridge. A priest presents God to us. He also presents us to God. He brings together the divine and the human. Priests do not protect God’s holiness from human sinfulness by setting up barriers to access. Nor do priests protect us from divine judgment. The priest opens up routes closed by fear or guilt or ignorance or superstition so that there is access. A priest mediates. He is just as much on God’s side as on our side. He is just as much on our side as on God’s side. (Peterson, 33-34)
When we aspire to be more faithful, a priest promises help. If we regret the mess we are in, a priest promises help. If the Son of Man does the work of a priest, there is much to be in awe of but nothing to be afraid of: mediation results in loving union. If the Son of Man does the work of a priest, there is much to be repented of but nothing of which to despair: mediation results in gracious forgiveness. (Peterson, 34)
And remember, God has made us priests as well. We can help serve as a bridge, uniting others with God. We can help tear down barriers to God. We can help guide people into an experience with God’s gracious forgiveness. Christ is the great high priest. But we are priests as well.
Head, Hair, and Eyes
After the clothing, the head, the hair, and the eyes are usually the first things we look at in a person. In this image of Christ, the clothes present a role - that of a priest; the head and the eyes declare his character. The head and the eyes of the Son of Man show him to be forgiving. Christ is pure and purifying. (Peterson, 34)
He is pure: “his head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow.” This image brings to our remembrance the prophet Isaiah’s promise: “Your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow . . . they shall become like wool.” We also remember the psalmist’s prayer, which is our prayer too: “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” The purity we long for is embodied in Christ the Son of Man.
He is pure and he is purifying: “his eyes were like a flame of fire.” A host of biblical images accumulate in the fire-flaming eyes of the Son of Man: pillar of fire, burning bush, altar fires, fiery furnace, fiery chariots. Fire penetrates and transforms. Holiness gets inside us and when it gets inside us it changes us. Christ’s gaze penetrates and purifies. He doesn’t look at us, he looks into us. We are invaded by him. (Peterson, 35)
George McDonald says he is a consuming fire; and it is not that the fire will burn us if we are not pure, but that the fire will burn us until we are pure. It will go on burning within us until all that is foreign to it has yielded to the healing purifying presence of God. (George McDonald, Unspoken Sermons, George Routledge & Sons, n.d., 44)
Feet
The image now moves to the feet: “his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace.” Already alert to Daniel, we can hardly fail to recognize a contrast between Revelation’s vision of the Son of Man and the “great image” that Nebuchadnezzar dreamed and Daniel interpreted (Daniel 2:31-45).
That image had a head of fine gold, a torso of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, and legs of iron, but feet that were a mixture or iron and clay. The iron and clay did not make a good bond. The image itself was magnificent, constructed of precious and strong metals, but it was set on a base that was flawed. When struck by a rolling rock, it fell apart. No matter how wonderful the image, its inadequate base doomed it to destruction. It “became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found” (Dan 2:35).
The kingdoms of this earth, no matter how impressive and powerful their images, are set on bases that are flawed (Peterson, 35). Political kingdoms, religious systems, corporate kingdoms will not endure. With a base made of human power, human righteousness, human greed, the kingdoms of this world will all tumble to the ground. They are not worthy of your life or allegiance.
Christ’s kingdom is the only kingdom worthy of your allegiance. It is set on a base that is strong and magnificent. It is more than image. The bronze base is firm. It has been tested by fire. It is the only kingdom that will endure to the end. And so we crown Christ the King.
Voice
And then there is a voice: “a voice like the sound of many waters.”
In his Gospel, John describes the Christ as the Word, the Word Made Flesh. More than any other Gospel writer, he presents us with the Christ speaking. “Biblical faith is not guesswork in a moral-spiritual fog; it is response to an exact word spoken in Jesus Christ.” (Peterson, 36)
When it comes to the spoken word, how something is said matters as much as what is said. And so before we are told what the Son of Man says, we are introduced to his way of speaking: “his voice was like the sound of many waters.” Christ’s voice is like his appearance - awesome and commanding and beautiful. Worthy to be heard and obeyed.
Right Hand
Next, our attention is directed toward the right hand of the Son of Man: ‘in his right hand he held seven stars.” The seven stars would be the planets, the unfixed stars, of which seven were known in the first century. The astrologist, one who studied the movement of these planets among the constellations, was a person of prestige in the ancient world. The influence of astrology permeated all popular religion in the ancient world. (Peterson, 36-37)
To say that Christ holds the seven stars in his right hand, a symbol of power to do something, is John’s way of saying that Christ runs the cosmos. The planets and stars do not control us. Christ is Lord of the planets.
Christ stands in the midst of the lampstands (symbols of the churches) and holds the stars, which are the angels of the seven churches, God’s messengers through whom Christ will speak to the seven churches. We will hear later what he says as we move through the Book, but for now it is enough to know that Christ always stands in the midst of the church to speak, if only we will listen and obey.
Mouth
The image portrays the mouth through which Christ will speak as a sword. You may recall the writer of Hebrews saying that “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb 4:12). In a similar way John uses the metaphor of the sword to demonstrate what takes place when Christ speaks.
These persecuted and suffering Christians, being terrorized by the sword, are tempted just like any other group or nation, to meet force with force, sword with sword. But while scripture is full of military action, gradually, and finally in Jesus, military force becomes a metaphor for the word of God. Christ and his kingdom do not come with a military sword. (In Gethsemane, he ordered Peter to put his sword away). Rather, Christ comes with his word, which is like a sword. They are sharp words that penetrate and conquer. They are not weak, but powerful. Eugene Peterson says, “The power that the world respects comes out of the mouth of a gun; the power that the person of faith respects comes from the mouth of Christ.” (Peterson, 37-38)
Face
And then there is the face of Christ: “his face was like the sun shining with full force.” We have seen shining faces before in the Bible. When Moses returned from the mountain of revelation, his face was shining so brightly that the people could not look upon it. And the benediction of Aaron the priest: “The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you” (Num 6:25). The blessing of God is made personal in the shining face of Jesus: “And his face was like the sun shining in full force.” God in Christ is warmth and sunlight and blessing.
We are not cursed; we are blessed. We were not meant to live in darkness, but in the light of the shining face of God in Jesus Christ. Light, not darkness, is the fundamental reality in which we were made to live. “God is light in whom there is no darkness.” “The light shines in the darkness,” says John in his Gospel, “and the darkness has not overcome it.” (Peterson, 38)
The Whole Image
Who is this Christ at the Center of everything? Standing in the midst of the church in the robe of a priest with a golden royal sash across his chest. Head and hair white as snow. Eyes flaming with fire. Feet like refined bronze. A voice like rushing waters in a mouth of sharp and piercing words. His face shines like the sun as he stands with the whole world in his hand.
Responding to the Vision of Christ
More than an image to be analyzed, this vision of Christ is to be experienced. For John it was an overwhelming experience of fear and reverence. He saw this vision of Christ and fainted at his feet, as if he were dead. Then the right hand of Christ, the hand that holds the world, pulled him up, and his voice reassured him: “Do not fear.” said the voice. “I am the First and the Last. And I am Alive. I died, but I came back to life, and my life is now forever.”
These closing words are central to the book of Revelation. They are words about life and the conquering of death. To know that Christ is the living one who holds the keys to death and life are powerful words of reassurance. Death holds no threat to followers of the risen Christ.
What part of this image draws you this day?
Do you need Christ the priest, with shining face, to bless you with God’s forgiveness?
Have you grown estranged from The One Who Made You?
Do you need a bridge to walk across in order to come back home?
Do you need the fire of holiness to permeate you and transform you and purify you?
Do you need to hear the sharp and piercing words of Christ to wake you from your slumber?
Do you need to change kingdoms? Have you been living for the earthly kingdoms of power and greed and wealth, and now you’re ready to give your life to something that will last?
You can place your life this day into the hands of the One who holds the whole world in his hands. He’s ready to hold you. He’s ready to be the Center of your life. He’s ready to give you a reason to live, a task to do worthy of eternity.
In response to this vision, John has been lifted from the ground and is now on his feet. He has a task to do: “Write what you see.” And he does.
We all have a task in this maddening world. It is a frightening place. And we are called to live within it as faithful witnesses to another kingdom - a kingdom of love not hate, peace not violence, truth not lies, forgiveness not revenge, with the sword of speech that transforms not the sword of war that kills. What is your task? What is your task? Listen. Listen. Listen.
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CRESCENT HILL BAPTIST CHURCH
2800 Frankfort Avenue
Louisville, Kentucky 40206
(502) 896-4425
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