Who is Jesus? Who are we? The answer to the first question should directly impact the answer to the second! Furthermore, this question was posed by Christ himself (see Matt. 16:13-16, Mark 8:27-29, Luke 9:18-20). In fact, Jesus didn’t much care about what other people said about him rather what our response would be as his followers. With this framework in mind, John opens his mixture of letter, prophecy, and apocalypse in Revelation 1:5-6, 19,

“and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen… Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this.”

JESUS IS THE ONE WHO MADE US

John was commanded to write down these visions to encourage the church to trust and follow Jesus at all times. Acknowledging Christ as Creator frees us to accept the identity, gifts, and purpose for which we’ve been created. Creators hold authority over their creation. Isaiah 45:9b poses, “Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles?'” Knowing who Jesus is helps us to know who we are because he is our maker! Jesus made us into a kingdom of priests for God’s glory (Rev. 1:6). His kingdom was made clear from his birth. The angel Gabriel declared to Mary in Luke 1:30b-33,

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

HE MADE US A KINGDOM

A kingdom is the dominion of the king. Kings have complete control, or sovereignty, over their kingdom. A kingdom is not a democracy. Christ, as Creator, always rules over his creation (Eph. 1:11). His kingship never ends. “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ–by grace you have been saved,” reminds Ephesians 2:4-5. Following Jesus gives us membership in his kingdom (Eph. 2:19). How are we supposed to live in this kingdom? 1 Peter 2:4-5, 9-10 declares,

“As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ… But you are chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

HE MADE US PRIESTS

In the Old Testament, priests carried out duties of proper worship and represented the people before God. So here’s the good news! Mark 15:38 recounts, “And the curtain of the temple was torn into two, from top to bottom.” The temple curtain held out everyone but specific priests who were allowed in to carry out the sacrifices of God’s people. We now, through Christ because of the cross, have direct access to the Father. The curtain is torn! We are a kingdom of priests (see Eph. 2:18, 1 Tim. 2:5, Heb. 10:19, or Rev. 1:6). No longer are physical sacrifices (see the Book of Leviticus) required to be made right with God! Through Jesus we have been saved by grace through faith (see Eph. 2:8-10) and now live a life of worship, our spiritual sacrifice to God (see Rom. 12:1-2 or Heb. 13:15-16). How will you respond to the King and live in the kingdom? Restoration is here. His name is Jesus. Follow him today!

#RestorationIsHere #JESUSis

• Written by: Larry Johnson & Dean Ross (11/27/20)
• This blog is part 6 of 7 based on the “Jesus Is…” series by Family Church NOLA. For more resources visit: http://www.JoinTheFamily.Church
• All scripture quoted from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (Crossway)