Meditation Mondays: Revelation 1:7-8: The Ascended and Reigning Jesus

Passage:

7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:7-8 NKJV)

Meditation/Commentary:

Last week we saw John introduce Jesus as the 'ruler of the kings of the earth'. This is certainly a fulfillment of Psalm 2:

8 "Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
9 You shall [hbreak them with a rod of iron;
You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ ”

10 Now therefore, be wise, O kings;
Be instructed, you judges of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear,
And rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest [jHe be angry,
And you perish in the way,
When His wrath is kindled but a little.
Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him." (Psalm 2:8-12 NKJV)

The kings of the earth are to 'serve the Lord with fear'. Christ through His life, death, and resurrection inherited the nations and the ends of the earth as His possession. He is its rightful owner. God gives this to Him at the conclusion of the covenant of grace in the New Testament.

In today's passage John says that Jesus is 'coming with clouds' and that 'every eye will see him, even those that pierced him [crucified him]." Is this a reference to the second coming of Christ? No. This is a reference to the ascension of Jesus. These passages take their material from the Old Testament specifically Daniel 7:13-14 and Zechariah 12:10. See these passages below:

13 “I was watching in the night visions,
And behold, One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed." (Daniel 7:13-14 NKJV)

and;

10 “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn." (Zechariah 12:10 NKJV)

Daniel's prophecy is about the day that Jesus will ascend and take dominion over all the earth. Jesus' ascension to the 'Ancient of Days' was the inauguration of his kingdom reign 2000+ years ago. How do we know Jesus is reigning? He gave us the commission to announce His Lordship (Matthew 28:18-20), He is seated at the right hand of God until all His enemies are made His footstool (Psalm 110:1; Hebrews 1:5-14) and the last enemy to be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:26).

Zechariah's prophecy is about the day of Pentecost. After Christ ascended, His Holy Spirit was poured out on the house of 'David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem' (Acts 2). The mourning is this awareness that only comes by the power of the Holy Spirit that our sins pierced our Savior. Jesus was crucified so that we might be reconciled. So when we preach the gospel in the power of the Spirit, we are reminded of Christ's sacrifice.

Finally, Jesus is eternal. He is the 'alpha and omega'. He is the first and the last. And His kingdom has no end (Isaiah 9:7; Luke 1:33). So, today meditate on the truth that your ascended Jesus is ruling and reigning today.