End Time Insights

The sacrifice and exaltation of Jesus are prominent themes in the Book of Revelation . The plan of God to redeem humanity and His creation is unveiled in its visions and images. It is his death and resurrection, and his consequent enthronement that have put this plan into action. His sovereignty over the Cosmos is the result of his faithful testimony given in his sacrificial death. Jesus of Nazareth is the “ Lamb who is worthy ”!

In the Book of Revelation , Jesus is called the “ Ruler of the Kings of the Earth ,” a declaration made in the PRESENT TENSE . His present sovereignty over the Earth and its nations is based on his past death and resurrection, NOT on any hereditary rights, economic power, or military might. He sits on God’s Throne as the slain “ Lamb ” where he reigns over all things as the result of his submission to an unjust death.

The New Testament links the enthronement of Jesus to his death and resurrection by applying key messianic texts in the Hebrew Bible to him. He qualified to rule over all things because of his faithful “ obedience unto death ,” and this fact God confirmed and vindicated by raising him from the dead. Not only did his Father resurrect him, but He also seated him “ at His right hand ” where he now reigns supreme over the entire Creation.

The “ Son ” in the twelfth chapter of Revelation represents the Messianic figure from the Second Psalm whom God declared would “ shepherd the nations .” Following the enthronement of the “ slain Lamb ,” heaven declared, “ Now is come the Kingdom of God and the authority of His Christ .” His “ faithful testimony ” in death and his victory through resurrection marked the start of his reign over the “ nations .” However, he rules by “ shepherding ” them, and not through conquest and tyranny - (Revelation 5:6-14, 12:5).

The conspiracy by the Earth’s kings to unseat God’s Son is applied by the New Testament to the plot to kill Jesus . The  Second Psalm  is a key messianic passage applied to Jesus several times in the New Testament. But precisely when were its predictions fulfilled, and is the Messiah reigning now on David’s Throne? Or is the world still waiting for his accession to God’s Throne at a future date? What about the “ revolt ” of nations and kings against Yahweh’s “anointed one”? Is this a prediction of a future conflict between Jesus and the government of the Earth - (Psalm 2:1-6)?

Jesus received complete authority from his Father to reign over the Cosmos. Only his kingdom will endure .  At the height of his power, the absolute monarch of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, boasted before heaven and earth, “ Is not this Babylon the great and exceptional kingdom that I built by the  might of my power  and for the glory of my majesty ?” His boast was not an idle one. Babylon was one of the great powers of the ancient world.

The reign of Jesus began with his exaltation to the messianic throne after his Death and Resurrection  – Psalms 110:1. The New Testament links Christ’s enthronement to his Death and Resurrection by using key messianic texts from the Hebrew Bible. He achieved the authority to rule because of his faithful obedience, and God vindicated him by raising him from the dead.

Philadelphia ( Revelation 3:7-13 ): The city of Philadelphia lay fifty kilometers southeast of Sardis and between it and Laodicea. It straddled a major road into the interior; trade with other regions was vital to its economic life. Philadelphia was established as a city around in 189 B.C. by Eumenés II, king of Pergamos. He named it in honor of his brother and successor, Attalus II . The city came under Roman rule when the last king, Attalus III, bequeathed Pergamos to Rome in his will (133 B.C.).