Verse 5. “And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.”
“And from Jesus Christ”—Christ is the last mentioned of the three, as showing how entirely He is brought out here in connection with the government of the earth.
“The faithful witness” —the one who infallibly showed out what God is, and indeed all truth, when He was on the earth.
“The first begotten from the dead” —this is the power of the resurrection “from the dead” down here.
“The Prince of the kings of the earth” —
His place in power over all dominion here below, a place He has yet to take as to actual possession of it. He is not here called “the Son of the Father;” nor yet spoken of as Head of the body, the church; nor yet as the Lamb in the midst of the throne; but as Prince of the kings of the earth, thus showing that it is simply His connection with the earth that is taken up here.
But then, mark, the moment Christ is mentioned, how the heart of the church goes out with the joy of its own proper and personal relationship with that Christ: “Unto Him that loves us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father.” This never fails; when Christ is spoken of, no matter what the subject is, He is still our Christ, with whom we are livingly associated, so that it is impossible to hear His name only without its drawing forth the response of the soul, and the acknowledgment of what Christ is to it. If I think of the judgment even, and of Him as the Judge, I say, “I am associated with Him;” in all things He is my Christ.
If in this life the wife of some eminent man saw him coming, she would naturally say, “There comes my husband,” because her own relationship is in her thoughts, and first in them. So of the church with Christ, whatever He is revealed in. So it is at the end of the book, when the prophetic part is closed, we find another response of the same kind. The moment He says, “I am the bright and Morning Star,” instantly the church responds according to her hope in Him, and says, Come. “The Spirit and the bride say, Come.” And so should it ever be with us. Christ Himself should be filling up every thought and affection of the heart. It is just this that gives its value to every character of testimony to Christ, to every part of His glory.
That which concerns Christ concerns me, whatever the immediate subject may be. If my heart is occupied with Himself who possesses the coming glory, unless I find Him in the glory, the glory itself would be nothing to me. I always want something that concerns Christ, and because it concerns Christ, it must necessarily concern me.
It is perfectly true that some subjects, even connected with our Lord, are more interesting than others, and that in proportion as they bring us into closer connection with Himself. The crown of Jesus in that day will be composed of many diadems, and each one, though worn in respect of others than the church, will form part of our joy, because part of His glory. Our joy does not only consist in the knowledge of individual salvation, as our individual salvation is not the end of our joy. Although, blessed be God, it is the beginning to us; there is not one thing, however apparently disconnected with it, that can ever lose its value in the eyes of a saint, viewed in its connection with the glory of Christ. We may see this carried out at the deathbed of a Christian. If Christ Himself has been his joy, all that belongs to Him will be precious. If the soul has been merely occupied with the work of Christ in bringing salvation to itself, there will be peace, because it knows salvation; but if the person of Christ has become the object of affection, and the soul is occupied with Himself, such a one has a constant spring within, of joy, as well as settled peace; for when Christ is the personal object to the soul, it possesses a joy which the mere fact of knowing we are saved (blessed as it may be) will not continuously give. If Christ fill the heart, it will not be merely that I am happy because I am saved; but the thought of Him, to whom I am going, will fill my soul with joy. It is true, I am going to heaven, but the thought that makes heaven a heaven to my soul is, that Christ Himself is there; there is someone to go to. The person I have loved on earth, I am going to be with in heaven. And thus it is always expressed in Scripture. For the spirit, it is departing and being with Christ.
Verse 7. “Behold, He cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see Him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him.” Not so the church. I am not going to wail when I see Christ. Ah! how my face will brighten when I first get a glimpse of Him; though, alas; if our affections are not right, it cannot be a present joy to think of being caught up to meet Him. And here I would ask, Is there anything allowed that would make you wish the Lord’s coming delayed; any mere natural affection even that comes in, turning the eye and the heart away? If the heart is wrapped up in Christ, and we feel what it is to be in such a world, not of toil merely, but of sin, what a thought to be with Christ out of it!
Surely there is not a chord in the heart of the saint that does not vibrate exactly contrary to the feelings of those whose eyes shall see Him and wail! And yet the positive hope, the joy of seeing and being with Himself, is a yet fuller and more abiding source of joy than deliverance itself.
When I say “Every eye shall see Him,” then it is wailing with the poor world; but when I say, “My eye shall see Him,” then every feeling of my soul will bound up with joy—the very opposite of wailing. Am I looking even only to be spared? Did not Christ say: “I go to prepare a place for you, and I will come again and receive you unto Myself?” which was really saying, “This world is not good enough for you; I cannot stay with you here, where sin and sorrow are stamped on all around; but I will come and take you to be with Me where I am.” What an entire difference between the two aspects of the coming of the Lord!