A vision may catch you unaware

Revelation 1:12-20
 
John had been exiled to island of Patmos for preaching the gospel.  It was Sunday, and he was, as the NJB puts it, “in ecstasy” (v. 10). I am sure that as he sat there reflecting on spiritual matters he became increasingly aware of the presence of Christ. Suddenly a trumpet-like voice spoke from behind telling him to write letters to the seven churches in Asia. John wheeled around and there stood a figure in the middle of seven golden lampstands who appeared to be the Son of Man. In writing of his remarkable experience John described him as follows:
         - he was dressed in a long robe with a golden sash
         - his hair was snow-white
         - his eyes were like blazing fire
         - his feet glowed like bronze in a furnace
         - his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves
         - in his right hand he held seven stars
         - out of his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword
         - his face shone like the mid-day sun.
 
         At this point David fell to the ground before him as though dead. My question is, “How else would any one of us reacted in an encounter like that?” Obviously we are dealing with something from outside of the world we normally experience. It wasn’t until this visitor from another sphere brought John back to his feet and told him to write the seven letters that the narrative seems to return to normal – and that will last for no more than two chapters.
         It’s crucial that at the beginning of the Apocalypse we understand that it is a symbolic book. That doesn’t mean that its meaning is up for grabs. In our own conversations and letters we move in and out of figurative language all the time. When I sing to you, “Never in a Million Years” I’m not suggesting that you get out your calculator, but saying “not for a long time” and you know what I mean. John’s heavenly visitor now illustrates how he is to interpret what follows. He says that the “seven stars” are the “angels” of the church (v. 20) and the “seven lampstands” are the churches themselves. At the very outset, John identifies the genre in which he writes. This will keep us from discovering such things as television and helicopters in of our interpretation of the book of Revelation.
         My point in stressing the symbolic nature of the book is to keep it from being read as though it were straight-forward prose. Words bleed their meaning from context. Let the setting determine meaning. The argument that such an approach involves interpretation is not convincing because all translation is interpretation. So, read directions to the next town at face value but don’t expect to measure the heart-beat of a hill since, according to the famous musical, hills “are alive with the sound of music.” Accept the symbolic for what it is or you will miss the point.