Daily Devotional For January 3, 2025
The revelation of Jesus Christ . . . . Rev 1:1.
There is a custom in our household and many others. When young people get hungry, they tend to shout, “Mom, what’s there to eat?” But if Mom is too busy to answer, or has stepped outside, the next step is to head into the kitchen and see if something is cooking. If there is, the next step is to lift the cover off the pots on the stove (or open the oven door if something is baking) to see what is inside. The smells of cooking can be a wonderful thing, but often they raise a good deal of curiosity. What is it that smells so good? What can we look forward to eating in a few minutes?
The word for “revelation” in the original is “apokalupsis,” the Greek word from which the English word “apocalypse” comes. The word apokalupsis is made up of two Greek words, apo, which means “from” and kalupto, which means to cover. So the word apokalupsis means “to take the cover off” something. If that something were a pot, taking the cover off allows you to see what’s cooking. You are “unveiling” the contents of the pot. In the book of Revelation you are “taking the cover off” Jesus. You are learning something about Him that would be hidden if you didn’t have access to this book.
In what sense does Jesus need uncovering in the Book of Revelation? Think for a minute what we would be missing if the Book of Revelation hadn’t made it into our Bibles. When Jesus was on the earth, He was a human being, in the flesh. He walked on this earth, talked in human language, dressed like the people around Him. He lived in a particular culture, time, and place. He got tired, dirty and sweaty. It would be easy to look at that Jesus and say, “Well, He is a great teacher, a great man, and a great prophet. But surely He’s not the king of the universe, is He? Would the king of the universe get sweaty and tired?”
If all we knew about Jesus was what we have in the gospels, we would be missing a great deal. The Book of Revelation “takes the cover off” Jesus of Nazareth. It shows us that He is no longer just Jesus of Nazareth but the One Who sits on the throne in heaven and Who has rulership over the entire universe.
If we did not have the book of Revelation, we would not have a full picture of Who Jesus is. It was the King of the universe who was willing to become a human being, willing to serve and bless, willing to subject Himself to shame and abuse, willing to suffer and die for us. It is the greatness of Jesus that makes His sacrifice all the more remarkable. The Book of Revelation takes the cover off that greatness so everyone can see.
Lord, give us a “hunger” to know Jesus as we have never known Him before. May the images of His greatness in Revelation open our eyes to the privilege of relationship with Him.