Revelation 22:20
He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!”
Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!
From whom does this message originate?
Firstly, We must recognize the speaker who is addressing us in the first place. “He” is the person or proper noun who is making this statement. The “He” here represents the person of Jesus Christ. (Revelation 1: 18) He carries a lot of weight because of the immutable nature of the person which “He” represents. Jesus Christ, the Ancient of Days is about to make a declaration! (Revelation 1:8)
I suppose if someone made a declaration about what they intended to do in the future as fact a rational person would have to think about the probability of success based on the character and nature of the person making the claim. For example, meteorologists make weather pattern projections using computers and are fairly accurate. Politicians have incumbents according to their political agendas and may or may not fully accomplish all that they set out to accomplish in a given term. Parents train their children according to biblical principles and experience varying degrees of success.
In the above examples, (meteorologists, politician, or parents) declarations made by such individuals by thought, word, or deed and their fulfillment will vary based on factors such as the reliability, skill, and power of the individual making the declaration. Success in these cases is limited because of shortcomings people typically experience throughout life. In brief, we do not know perfect meteorologists, politicians, or parents… or do we?... and are they even possible?
Definite adjectives describe a subject by commonly known facts. Definite adjectives carry the weight of reliability because of their accepted meaning. Imagine in our previous examples if somehow the meteorologist, politician, or parent was described in that by a definite adjective and let that sink in. What if all three... the meteorologist, politician, and the parent were commonly known by all to be absolutely reliable in their respective fields? Their declarations would therefore be trustworthy.
The “He” in verse 20 that we have already identified as the Lord Jesus Christ is about to make a declaration! Before the declaration is made by Jesus Christ however, He introduces himself by the title: “faithful witness”.
How is Jesus Christ a faithful Witness?
As previously discussed in our meteorologist, politician, and parent cases; each person has a specific field of interest in which they work to carry out a desired, absolute purpose which is commonly desirable by all men. I will therefore try to explain the faithfulness of Jesus Christ as a witness as it pertains to his current field of interest as the redeemer of all mankind. To assert that Jesus Christ’s current field of interest is as redeemer of all mankind, I must make a case that mankind is in need of a redeemer that would validate Christ as a faithful witness. Death (physical and spiritual) is the greatest evidence pointing to the need of a faithful witness of God’s redemptive plan. In order for mankind to have any kind of tangible future to even peer into through a telescope, death needs to somehow be overcome. Jesus Christ is our faithful witness in this regard because He has triumphed over the grave by his bodily resurrection. (Revelation 1:18) The Bible explains that it was necessary for Christ to suffer to accomplish our redemption. It is this great feat that will ultimately lead to our own bodily resurrection and grants Jesus Christ the current credibility as one who has overcome the grave personally and has made a proclamation from beyond the grave! .(1 Corinthians 15:20) His witness is therefore faithful because He has, by his suffering on the cross and subsequent death and resurrection, overcome the grave for those who trust in Him. (1 Corinthians 15:55, Revelation 20:6)
My second evidence explaining the faithfulness of Jesus Christ’s witness as redeemer of all mankind is His power to overcome sin among God’s people. The Hymn writer wrote:
“Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found was blind but now I see.”
The author of Ecclesiastes writes that God placed eternity within our hearts. While it is true that Christians do sin on occasion, the pattern of unbroken sin that was present prior to conversion has been exponentially broken in the lives of those who possess saving faith in the risen savior. The present reality of being free from sin is only compounded by the reality that we will one day be completely free from every sort of residual sin and its ill effects. (Revelation 21:4) This liberty from the enslaving power of sin is available in our lives because Jesus Christ lived a completely sinless human life and overcame sin on our behalf by dying for our sins and thus satisfying God’s righteous requirement of the law on our behalf. (Galatians 3:13) The Bible speaks of our evidenced, internal assurance whereby the Holy Spirit of God affirms with our spirit that we are children of God. Sin’s power was defeated at Calvariess cross by our triumphant, faithful witness and we eagerly anticipate the perfection of that freedom from sin. This evidenced freedom from sin is the second proof to the faithfulness of Jesus Christ’s witness.
My third evidence proving that Jesus Christ is indeed a faithful witness in the office of redeemer of all mankind is in his triumph over humanities arch enemy, Satan. Satan predates humanity as do all angelic beings. (Job 38:7) Satan is God’s adversary in relation to the redemption of mankind and has sought to overthrow God’s purposes for humanity since our earliest ancestors. (Genesis 3:1-7) The adversary has been sowing distrust in the human heart ever since. To identify the origin of evil, we must recognize it’s father. (Ezekiel 28:15) In order to properly vanquish evil, A being would need to prevail in a confrontation with Satan on our behalf. Jesus Christ accomplished this victory by keeping covenant with the Father and not allowing the temptation of Satan to cause him to sin. (Mathew 4:10) By doing this, Jesus regained the mantle of sovereign leadership on earth that was forfeited by our previous representative, Adam. Satan had already been judged and pronounced doomed already for his rebellion in heaven (John 16:11, Isaiah 14: 12-16) but his defeat was made public when Jesus triumphed over Satan by rising from the dead, simultaneously redeeming all the souls that had been kept in paradise, waiting for the purchase price of their release so that they could enter heaven’s gates along with Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 4 :8) The price of redemption was paid on the cross of Calvary and Satan’s accusations became null and void. Jesus Christ the faithful witness defeated our arch enemy Satan!
To what is Jesus Christ witnessing too…
The answer to this important question can be discovered by reading the opening verse in the book of the revelation. (Revelation 1:1) Jesus Christ desires for His church to know and understand the future. Revelation means to reveal. Thus, Jesus Christ is witnessing to His church about his imminent return and future events that must take place.
To whom is Jesus Christ witnessing too?
Jesus Christ is addressing his church on earth throughout church history (Revelation 1:11)
Why was the prophecy given?
To understand the prophecies in the book of Revelation, It is important to note that the book of Revelation was written for the church to live in anticipation of Jesus Christ’s imminent return. (1 Corinthians 15: 51-52) Every activity and purpose of the church that is done under the sun is leading to the climactic return of the Faithful Witness. The events recorded in the book of the Revelation prompt Christians to trust and obey in this current age as we witness the words of the prophecy being fulfilled in our day and look forward to His immanent return. (Revelation 1:3)
When did the words of this prophecy take effect?
Jesus Christ is the faithful witness of all the things contained in the prophecy of the revelation from the moment He rose from the grave, having redeemed humanity by his shed blood to the last predicted events of human history yet future. (Revelation 1: 5) The future is certain because the one who witnesses to these things, all these things; is faithful and true. Many people (even Christians) are unsure about the future and may even have a fearful disposition towards end times. The Lord of the church, Jesus Christ does not want us to me ignorant as to what must take place on the earth. (John 15: 15) The knowledge that Jesus Christ is coming back for his church should fill our hearts with gratitude and anticipation that He who is a faithful witness is coming back to receive us unto himself. (John 14:3) Jesus Christ declares He is coming back soon! This means that his return is immanent and the urgency of mankind’s preparedness is imperative. Jesus Christ is going to take his bride (the church) to heaven to escape the tribulation that is coming upon the whole earth to test those who are on earth. There are no signs that must precede his coming back for his church. The future events in the book of revelation from chapter 4-22 do not give instruction to the church but rather give insight on what must soon take place. The church will simply not be upon the earth during this period of time. (revelation 3:10-11)
How should we anticipate the return of the Faithful Witness?
And so the Apostle John resounds the rallying cry of the church since it’s birth...Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! This is the heart cry of everyone who longs for righteousness. Jesus Christ is a great King and to him belong a righteous kingdom. We long for a kingdom which is characterized by idealistic, perfected righteous rule where evil is vanquished and good abounds. This current world cannot fix itself through human ingenuity or philosophy. We need the Faithful Witness to return and set things right. And so I urge you Brothers and Sisters to join your hearts with the Apostle John and respond to the Faithful Witness’s declaration with these words:
Amen!, Come, Lord Jesus!
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