Alive Forever More
“And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. And He laid His right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I AM the first and the last: I AM He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I AM alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” Revelation 1:17-18
The Apostle John, exiled on the Isle of Patmos in the Aegean Sea, was visited by Jesus in order that Jesus could give him the revelation of the last days and His return to earth. Upon witnessing the glorious sight of the King of kings and Lord of lords, John fell prostrate on the ground at Jesus’ feet as if he had suffered a fatal blow rendering him nearly lifeless. Even though he had called himself “the disciple whom Jesus loves”, in effect, acknowledging how much Jesus loved him, and he, in turn, after spending three plus years experiencing the kindness and care of Jesus, loved Jesus with all of his heart, John became excruciatingly aware of his own sinfulness and insignificance when compared to the Lord of glory. I recall when Peter, one of Jesus’ twelve disciples, who also fell down at Jesus’ feet after experiencing the miracle of a great haul of fish after obeying Jesus’ word, said, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord:” (Luke 5:4-8). A true encounter with the Savior makes one aware of his or her own spiritual poverty and the need for a touch from Jesus, and a touch from the Lord was what John received.
Jesus laid His right hand upon John to raise him up and give him assurance that he was accepted by the Lord. A touch is an outward expression of care and concern. I remember an old story that I heard about an older lady who lived alone and had few relatives or friends who were still living. When she went to the grocery store, she would always get in the same line, no matter if it was longer than all the others. One day the cashier asked her why she always came to his register. She replied that he always held her hand when placing her change in her hand. She was just longing for a touch from another for acceptance and acknowledgement that she wasn’t forgotten. Wouldn’t that be great if people longed for a touch from Jesus?
As John rose to his feet, Jesus told him not to fear for He, Jesus, was the first and the last, in other words, Jesus was there in the very beginning and would continue throughout eternity in complete control of man’s destiny. Knowing that, why do we still fear? Nothing takes the Lord by surprise. Nothing can happen unless He permits it to happen. He takes care of those who belong to Him, thus why worry? Jesus then reminded John of the resurrection. If, for some reason, John had not realized that the One standing before him was Jesus Christ, the One who was crucified and resurrected to bring salvation to all who would believe, John was certainly convinced now that his Visitor was not an angel or some type of spiritual being, but the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the only One who had been resurrected to new life, never to die again. Jesus then proclaimed, “Amen”, meaning that the content of His words was as certain as His appearance before John. The usual meaning of the term “Amen” is “so be it”, a confirmation to the truth of a statement.
When Jesus walked the earth, He had no earthly possessions except the clothes and sandals that He wore. He told a would-be follower that He didn’t even have a place to sleep (Matthew 8:20). He did have one thing in His possession–the keys of hell and of death. What do keys do? They open a locked door, and they lock an open door. Who has the keys? The One who is trustworthy. He is the One who has access. He is in control. Hell was created by God as the place of abode for the devil ad his angels. God did not intend for man to enter the gates of hell. Man was created to be a close companion of God the Father, having fellowship with his Creator, and living forever in a garden of paradise. However, many know the account of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. Satan, as a serpent, caused them to doubt God’s goodness, and they became disobedient, eating of the forbidden fruit, and thus allowed sin to reign in them. Hell then became a very real eternal destination for mankind. But that is not the end of the story.
God, in His sovereignty and wisdom, had already prepared the way of escape from an eternity of suffering and separation from Himself by sending Jesus, His Son, to pay the penalty for man’s sin. Jesus is the way, truth, and life, and no one can come to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). Those who reject Jesus as Lord and Savior will spend eternity in hell with the gate locked behind them. In Matthew 10:28, Jesus told His disciples to not fear those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear Him who can destroy both the body and the soul in hell. Fear Him who has the keys of all power and authority.