The book of Revelation reveals Jesus’ three-fold identity as
a Bridegroom, a King, and a Judge.
Jesus is a passionate Bridegroom,
filled with love that is both tender and jealous. He will return in context to a
Bride who has made herself ready for Him. Jesus is a King who will rule the
nations. He will take over the earth, replacing unrighteous government with
righteous leaders and laws. His reign will be for the glory of God and for the
good of His people forever.
Jesus is also a righteous and wise Judge.
His judgments work to confront hatred of God and to establish love across the
entire earth.
"...for He is coming, for He is coming to judge the
earth. He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with His
truth." (Psalm 96:13)
He is not a leader who sits back passively when His people
are being hurt or oppressed. Even when the opposition is sin inside of us, He is
committed to destroying everything that would seek to come against His Bride.
When speaking to the Church in Pergamos, He described Himself as the One who has
the sharp two-edged sword in His mouth. He promised this Church He would fight
against them if they would not turn from their unrighteousness. He is a zealous
God, and He will not be silent about the sin that destroys our hearts. He will
not restrain the zeal He has for us; He will arise and fight on our
behalf. “Thus says the LORD of hosts: I am zealous for Zion with
great zeal; with great fervor I am zealous for her.'"
(Zechariah 8:2)
Through His Word, God has given us strategic information
about the future.
Jesus is the one true Judge who works redemptively to
confront hatred of God and truth in order to establish love across the whole
earth (Rev. 16:5-7; 19:1-5).
We learn from the Scripture there is a very severe crisis
coming to the earth. In fact, Jesus warns that this crisis will be greater in
severity than anything the world has yet experienced. If He were not to shorten
this time, no one would be able to endure it.
Jesus is a King who will intervene to save the earth by
taking over the government of every nation for the glory of God and the good of
His people forever. Jesus will replace all the unrighteous governments on earth
with righteousness leaders and laws. The seventh angel sounded…voices in heaven,
saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our
Lord…and He shall reign forever!" (Rev. 11:15)
In His kindness, God has told us about this crisis
beforehand. He has given us detailed information concerning the coming trouble
so that we will not be caught off guard. He wants us to be prepared for this
tribulation. This will be an hour of great confusion and chaos, and He wants
His people to understand what He is doing and why He is doing it.
The book of Revelation gives us more information about this
crisis than any other book in the Bible. Specifically, four chapters
(Revelation 6; 8-9; 16) tell us about twenty-one crisis events coming in the
future. As the Body of Christ, we are responsible to know and act on this
information. This information is more than an interesting riddle; it concerns
the personal welfare of our families, friends, and cities. It is an issue of
life or death, and so we would be wise to seek to understand it.
As the Judge, Jesus will campaign against the the thief that
has come to steal, kill and to destroy
(John 10:10). In mercy, He will Judge according to His very
own righteousness and we will not only witness the day of His vengeance but take
part in His eternal victory over evil.
