9I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” (Rev. 1:9-11)
Thoughts: Revelation is a book that many people avoid like a plague. While some scholars pretend it is only talking about the Roman Empire and the first century, this is clearly a short sighted and skeptical way of trying to interpret an optimistic and faith-filled book. John wrote this book to give hope, and was written in the context that the persecution of earthly rulers will not win in the end. The hope of Christ to some was forlorn. But the time is clearly much more ripe than it was. The blessing of Revelation is a blessing of hope. As long as we are alive and Christ has not come back at the end of history- closing the books and ending the reign of the unrighteous- there is hope. Christ wins- that is a blessing to know, believe, and hope. No matter who wins the elections- God wins in the end.
John was writing on Patmos- a beautiful island in the Aegean Sea. He was in exile. John says he was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day. What is the Lord's Day? It is the first day of the week on which Jesus rose from the dead at dawn-claiming the day. Sunday is His Day. The Spirit often comes to us when we are in worship on His Day, Every Sunday we celebrate the resurrection of Christ
Prayer: Lord, may I be inspired to be a blessing and to worship you.
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