“To the one who conquers I will give a place with me on my throne, just as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”
Revelation 3:21-22
One of the things that strikes me each time I study the book of Revelation is the way we are called to see things as followers of Jesus. The book presents a drastically different view of reality than the one in which we function in our everyday lives. The people who first received this book, which was a letter that contained these visions, were living under the pressure to conform to a culture of idolatry. There were things that were assumed to be true at that time that Revelation brings into question. For example, it was assumed that Rome was the ultimate power. It was Rome that brought and sustained peace. It was Rome that provided an economic system. It was Rome that gave protection or violence. There were other assumptions as well. It was assumed that there were other gods of things like beauty, wealth, and fertility and if you appeased these gods, then you could find life and fulfillment. The thing about Revelation that can be so disorienting is not simply that there is a power greater than Rome, but instead a question as to what power actually looks like and how it functions in reality. The very fabric of our fallen reality is brought into question through these visions.
Perhaps an example can help to explain this. Chapters two and three consist of seven letters written to seven churches in Asia Minor which was in the Roman Empire and faced the struggles and situation mentioned above. At the end of each of the letters, there is an exhortation to “conquer.” In Revelation 3:21-22, for example, the call for God’s people to conquer is connected to Jesus’ conquering. This raises some questions. How exactly did Jesus conquer? One may first expect conquering to look like conquest with a sword. That is what Rome did. When Rome conquered, their enemies died. When Rome conquered, it expanded its empire over more tribes, languages, people, and nations. In fact, when the disciples reveal what sort of conquering they have in mind in the Gospels, we find they are thinking of a military victory as well. What does conquering look like for Jesus the Messiah? In chapter five, John hears that the Lion of the Tribe of Judah has conquered! We would expect some sort of mighty and victorious figure to appear. Instead, John tells of a Lamb standing as if it had been slaughtered who was amidst the throne. The Lamb is then praised by a heavenly chorus precisely for being slaughtered! And then we find out by the death of this Lamb, people from every tribe, language, people, and nation were brought into God’s Kingdom. This is the exact opposite of what Rome did! This could not be more contrary to the logic of our world. We see, with the Slain Lamb on the throne, that the very way that God rules is somehow in and through the self-giving sacrifice of the Messiah, the Lamb of God. This is a vision of power, authority, and indeed reality that is drastically different than the one Rome gives. The choice that is presented to those first century Christians is which vision of reality they will choose to anchor their lives in.
We have idols in our culture as well. We are told to follow beauty, prosperity, wealth and power in order to find fulfillment and happiness. We are told that there are ultimate forces providing for our security and well-being. We are told that power looks a certain way. And we are challenged by John’s vision of a Lamb standing as if it had been slaughtered who is at the center of the heavenly reality receiving praise because he conquered. Perhaps the way we are trained to look at reality by the world is wrong. Maybe the heavenly reality is more true and eternal. What would it look like to realign our lives around Christ and this heavenly Kingdom while we live in the midst of a fallen world that functions in the exact opposite manner? That is the amazing challenge that the book of Revelation gives us.
May we be counted as among the ones who conquered by our faithful witness to the slaughtered Lamb. May we find our life in Christ. Amen.