Jesus and the Seven Churches of Asia Part 7
Jesus and the Seven Churches of Asia – Part 7
Rev. 3:14 – “The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.”
-Introduction
-Tonight, we will be concluding our series of lessons which have looked at Jesus’ descriptions of
Himself as He evaluated the seven churches of Asia.
-Tonight, we’ll focus on Rev. 3:14 as Jesus addressed the congregation at Laodicea.
-Phrases We’ve Looked At Previously
-There are a couple of aspects here that we have previously considered.
-First, “true” – Rev. 3:7.
-Secondly, “the beginning of God’s creation.” This is not an indication that Jesus Himself was created.
Rather, it exhibits His authority over the creation.
-We touched on this with Rev. 2:8 – “first and last.”
-However, in a separate lesson some time ago, we focused on this concept with a look at
Colossians 1:15-20 where “firstborn” is an indication of authority, not time. See also John 1:3.
-The Amen
-“Amen” is not a translation of the Greek word but rather a transliteration.
-It is used many times in the N.T. – more so by Jesus than any other person. In the Gospel Accounts,
Jesus is the only one to utilize the word.
-Some translations add the word “Amen” to the closing of the Gospel Accounts. The word is not
there in the Greek texts. Rather, it is more of a “stamp of approval” by the translators.
-Definition – “so be it,” “truly,” “surely”
-close of prayer - Eph. 3:14,21
-end of sentences – Rom. 16:20, 24, 27
-Jesus used “amen” to begin sentences
-John 3:3 – “Verily, verily” (KJV); “Truly, truly” (ESV); “I tell you the truth” (NIV)
-So, “amen” could be used to express approval, to affirm as true or at the beginning of a sentence
to emphasize the truthfulness and importance of the statement(s) to follow (“This is true and
important. You better listen.”)
-Here, it is applied to Jesus as a proper name emphasizing His complete truthfulness (see Rev. 3:7, true).
-Wayne Jackson states that Jesus is the “authenticator of truth.”1
-The Faithful and True Witness
-Faithful carries with it the idea of “trustworthy.” So, the combination of “Amen, faithful and true”
stresses the absolute truthfulness and trustworthiness of Christ.
-Rev. 19:1, 21:5, 22:6
-Trust in Him and He will not steer you wrong.
-But, what about this word “witness” (Gr. martus)? It can be used in a couple of different ways.
-First, as we might most commonly think of the term – Matt. 18:16; Acts 1:8, 5:32.
-Secondly, in terms of a martyr – Acts 22:20 (witness – ESV, NASB; martyr – NIV, KJV)
Rev 2:13 (witness – ESV, NASB, NIV; martyr – KJV)
Rev. 3:14 – (witness – ESV, NASB, NIV, KJV)
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1Wayne Jackson, A New Testament Commentary (Stockton, Calif.: Christian Courier Publications, 2011), 596.
-Rev 1:5 – followed by “the firstborn from the dead.”
-“In that text [Rev 1:5], the emphasis was on Jesus’ being faithful even to death—that is,
being a martyr. Here, the emphasis is on His trustworthiness. Perhaps Jesus stressed His
trustworthiness because of His assessment of the Laodiceans’ condition would be difficult
for them to accept. The church at Laodicea was the only congregation to receive no
commendation at all…Jesus therefore began by asserting that, as unpleasant as the words
might be, everything He would say was true.”2
-Laodicea
-Col. 2:1; 4:15-16
-Under the times of the Romans, Laodicea “suddenly became a great and wealthy center of
industry, famous specially for the fine black wool of its sheep and for the Phrygian powder for
the eyes, which was manufactured there (compare Rev 3:18)…In the year 60 A.D., the city was
almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake, but so wealthy were its citizens that they rejected
the proffered aid of Rome, and quickly rebuilt it at their own expense (compare Rev 3:17). It
was a city of great wealth, with extensive banking operations (compare Rev 3:18).”3
-Rev. 3:17-18
-It seems they had grown to trust in the material things of this world while neglecting
their spiritual conditions.
-May we not make the same mistake. May we always trust in Christ – the Amen, the
true and faithful witness!
-Closing and Invtitation
-In this series of lessons, we’ve been reminded of Jesus’ power and protection;awareness (and
therefore our accountability to Him); eternal nature/Deity; authority/victory over death;
judgment by way of the word; omniscience; steadfastness and punishment of His enemies;
absolute knowledge with reverence for God’s will; complete Holiness and Truthfulness – and
now tonight His absolute trustworthiness
-What a Savior! Why would we consider anything but faithfully serving Him?
Joplin – November 12, 2012 – p.m.
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2David Roper, Truth for Today Commentary, Revelation 1-11, (Searcy: Resource, 2008), 186.
3Edgar J. Banks, International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Biblesoft, Inc.