Unveiling Final Jesus: Portraits of Christ in the Book of Revelation

By Dean C. Knudsen

"In terms of the written canon of Scripture, the Book of Revelation is Gods last word. Common logic would seem to dictate that a God who is intelligent, reasonable and articulate would speak last words that would be easily understood by the vast majority of His audience. Unfortunately, in the case of The Revelation, the reality is quite different. For most of the last two millennia of Church history, Christians have fussed and fought (metaphorically, if not physically) over the intent, intelligibility and interpretation of The Revelation. What was given as a source of encouragement, unity and hope has become a cause of discouragement, division and fear."

In this book, the author presents a series of "portraits" of Jesus Christ, which are revealed in the successive apocalyptic visions contained in the Book of Revelation. These visions were not given to stir fear or confusion but to inspire hope and to give courage to a young Church - a Church that was struggling with the harsh realities of living according to the teachings of Christ in the midst of a decidedly non-Christian world. The author claims that Jesus is the focal point and central figure of this mysterious and final book of the Bible. In this manner, he seeks to make the message of Revelation relevant and reasonable to every reader.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jun 30, 2009
• ISBN: 9781438995106

Dean C. Knudsen

Dean Knudsen, M.Th.S., has served in pastoral ministry for over twenty years. Along with his wife, Virginia, he has pastored churches in Oregon, Alberta (Canada), and New Jersey, as well as ministering in Jamaica and the Philippines. He and Virginia have two grown sons, Adam and Jesse. His ministry is marked by a strong expository emphasis in preaching the Word of God, including teaching series on numerous of the books of the Bible. His series on the Book of Revelation is one of his favorites and is available by request. Currently residing in Florida, his writing is anchored in years of Biblical study and a passion for seeing Christ in the Book of Revelation. Response to this book is welcomed via e-mail at [e-mail].

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© 2009 Dean C. Knudsen. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First published by AuthorHouse 7/21/2009

ISBN: 978-1-4389-9510-6 (ebk)

ISBN: 978-1-4389-9509-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4389-9508-3 (hc)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2009906017

Printed in the United States of America

Bloomington, Indiana

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE

Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society

Cover design by Neil Knudsen ([e-mail])

Contents

Author’s Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

To Virginia, my wife and best friend, whose voice of encouragement has been an ongoing source of inspiration. Her listening ear and thoughtful suggestions have played a vital role in the writing of this book and, more importantly, in the whole of my life.

Author’s Preface

For some years now the pundits have been pontificating about the ‘culture wars’ in America. The perceived strength and/or impotence of the ‘religious right’ regularly make the headlines. Prominent ministers and their so-called ‘mega churches’ frequently find themselves in the spotlight while, at the same time, critics delight in reporting the decline of Christianity and the national shift to becoming a ‘post-Christian America.’

What is, perhaps, most unfortunate in all this, is that the true Church has allowed herself to be identified by external rather than internal realities. Under the umbrella of organized Christianity we are bombarded with charts, statistics, polls and surveys highlighting strategies and programs that promise to facilitate church growth. The focus is all too often on budgets and buildings, programs and personnel. Yet in the midst of all this, we seem to have forgotten, or at least conveniently overlooked, the most essential of all truths – that the true Christian Church is centered in a person. It is THE Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the heart and soul of Christianity and the Christian Church, in all of its forms and expressions.

Having served in pastoral ministry in the local church for over twenty years, I have seen all too often how easily we get distracted by secondary issues and lose our focus on Jesus. Most, if not all of us, have been guilty of the charge ascribed to the church at Ephesus, when Christ reproved them for having left their first love.

When one of His first disciples, Peter, exclaimed by faith, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus responded by promising, upon this rock I will build My Church. He was referring to the revelation of His true identity as being the immovable and unshakeable foundation upon which He, as chief architect and engineer, would establish the eternal community of faith.

It is time, once again, for that Church to be reminded of her true identity by refocusing her vision on her true Lord. And it is the humble purpose of this book to help focus the vision of its readers on the majesty, splendor and glory of that One who stands at the center of the cosmos – Jesus the Christ!

Introduction

Two thousand years ago a baby was born in a small Palestinian town called Bethlehem. The story has been told and retold ever since of how he grew up to become a wandering Jewish rabbi named Jesus bar Joseph. His astounding miracles and profound teachings enthralled the masses and, as might be expected, he garnered the attention of the religious and political leaders of his day. In so doing, he disrupted the status quo and earned the scorn and hatred of those leaders. His seemingly unorthodox methods and message eventually got him nailed to a Roman cross, publicly humiliated and executed as a criminal and heretic.

At the outset of his amazingly brief public ministry, there was another local prophet who had been preaching reform and ‘stirring the pot’ in his own abrasive way. One day, John the baptizer saw this Jesus walking in his direction and he boldly declared, to all within earshot, Behold, the Lamb of God. In fact, on the very next day, he did and said the exact same thing again – Behold, the Lamb of God.

John the apostle (not the baptizer), author of the Book of Revelation, is the only gospel writer who recorded this repeated declaration of the baptizer. It is possible, even likely, that he was the unnamed disciple of the baptizer who, upon hearing the challenge to behold the Lamb of God, left the baptizer and began following Jesus. Is it any wonder that, years later, when he penned The Revelation, he describes Jesus some 28 times as the Lamb?

He spent three and one-half years of his life following Jesus bar Joseph. He walked hundreds of dusty miles by his side. He shared innumerable meals with him. He sat in awe as his rabbi instructed the thronging masses. His mouth had dropped open more times than he could remember as he witnessed firsthand the incredible, life-changing signs and wonders performed by this itinerant rabbi. No doubt, he had studied every feature of his master during those memorable years. Had he chosen to do so, he could have described in great detail the height, weight, skin tone, hair and eye color, facial features and rugged handsomeness of this Jesus for all the world to know.

Why didn’t he do so? When he put pen to papyrus to record his gospel, was he restrained by the Holy Spirit from divulging irrelevant information so that the adoring masses in years to come would not idolize an image and end up worshipping an icon rather than a person? Perhaps he, along with the other disciples and apostles, understood clearly that the natural image of Jesus paled in significance in light of the spiritual portrait of the Savior that the New Testament writers were at pains to communicate.

When Jesus burst on the scene, it wasn’t his good looks or grand stature that captivated John and the other disciples. His physical appearance was far outweighed by the spiritual presence he radiated: We saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the father, full of grace and truth (Jn.1:14). Something supernatural captured their attention and, from that moment on, they could never look at him as just another man.

For the next three years they wrestled within their own hearts and minds to come to grips with the mind-boggling identity of their rabbi. They witnessed the raw power of God unleashed through His hands. They heard the unmistakable evidence of heaven-inspired truth pouring forth from His lips. They watched in wonder and awe as broken and shattered lives were transformed into new creations, almost on a daily basis. And all the while, their vision was being refined and honed to see and understand Him for who He really was.

The evening before his arrest and ultimate crucifixion, they were hunkered down with him in a crowded upper room. Having shared a traditional Passover celebration, they sat nervously listening to his Upper Room Discourse, straining to soak in every word that he uttered. They had a deep sense of foreboding that something terrible was imminent, yet their minds would not allow them to fully accept what He was trying to communicate to them. In this setting, where anxiety and tension hung heavy in the air, Jesus said something that gripped their attention and sent their minds reeling.

A little while, and you will no longer see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me (Jn.16:16). From the vantage point of having 20/20 hindsight, we may calmly explain that he was referring to his ‘vanishing’ into the tomb and to his ‘reappearance’ on Resurrection Sunday. Unfortunately, they didn’t have our wonderful insight, so they began to murmur among themselves, repeating Jesus’ words. And he, knowing their anxious thoughts and troubled hearts, preempted their question by repeating his statement yet again.

If we close our Bibles at this point in the conversation, satisfied that we have adequately discerned what seems to be the obvious intent of His words, then we will miss something vitally important. For when Jesus made, and then repeated, that statement, He deliberately chose to use two different words for ‘seeing.’ Though the distinction between them is not as radically sharp as one might like, the first word He used focuses primarily on physical sight and natural observation. The second word focuses primarily on mental perception and spiritual understanding.

In other words, what Jesus was really saying could be paraphrased thus: In a very brief time, you won’t be seeing me with the eyes in your head, and the absence of what you have grown comfortable focusing on will unnerve you. However, very soon you will begin to see me in a new way, with the eyes of your heart; a spiritual perception that is only enabled by faith.

Isn’t it interesting that one of His recorded post-resurrection appearances was to two disciples walking dejectedly home from Jerusalem, weighed down with the burden of shattered hopes and crushed dreams. When they arrived at their destination, they invited this unknown stranger to share supper with them. Now the tables were turned and suddenly the guest became the host. The stranger took the bread, broke it, and began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him (Lk.24:31). The eyes of their heart were instantly opened and they beheld Jesus. Spiritual perception flooded into the void left when natural vision had lost its object of focus. This is what Jesus had in mind all along.

The apostle Paul would later echo this same priority in his epistle to the church at Corinth: …we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer (2 Cor.5:16). Focusing on a vision of Jesus as He appeared when functioning within the parameters of his earthly ministry will no longer suffice. True disciples must now allow the indwelling Holy Spirit to open the eyes of their heart and refocus their spiritual vision to see Jesus as He is now – risen, ascended and glorified. As Paul said earlier in the same epistle, "we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the