Mike Bickle emphasizes the significance of Jesus as the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth, as outlined in Revelation 1:5. He explains that these titles reflect Jesus's human destiny and His preeminence in truth, resurrection, and governance. Bickle encourages believers to meditate on these truths, recognizing that Jesus embodies absolute truth and is the source of resurrection power. He highlights the importance of understanding Jesus's role in the eternal government of the earth, where He will reign with His people forever. The sermon calls for a deeper relationship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit's guidance in understanding these profound truths.

Turn to Revelation chapter 1. Father, we come before you in the name of Jesus. Father, we love your Son. We love your presence, Abba. And I ask you, Holy Spirit, to do what you do best and what you enjoy most. That you would declare Jesus to the human heart. I ask that you would come and declare Jesus to our mind and to our heart, like he said that you would. We believe you for that in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, we're continuing on our series, Jesus, Our Magnificent Obsession. This is part two. This is our second class on this for those that are visiting. A quick review from the last session that we covered. We looked at Jesus as the first and the last. So we'll take a few moments of review just to kind of get us up to date and then build on that foundation of Jesus being the first and the last. And then apply that to these three titles of Jesus as the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Because those three titles which describe his human destiny are based on the foundational truth of Jesus as the first and the last. And I'll bring that together in just a few moments. By way of review, paragraph A, in Revelation 1 to 3, John shares an open vision that he had. And in that open vision, he highlights 30 distinct descriptions of Jesus. And he highlights 18 eternal rewards. Now each one of these 30 descriptions and 18 rewards they communicate to us specific understanding about Jesus. Each one of them are very significant. Each one of them are like a title of a book in God's library. There's a volume of information behind every one of these descriptions. It's as though the Holy Spirit is saying, I'll give you the hint, Jesus is the faithful witness. You can search from Genesis to Revelation and I have so much to say to you about Him related to that title, to that description of Him. Paragraph B, in our last session, we looked at Jesus as the faithful, I mean as the first and the last. Now this is the title that he used the most in the book of Revelation. He used it four times. He didn't use any other title four times. That tells you it has a unique importance to the church. And so he asked the Holy Spirit, what does this mean? He's the first and the last. Now he said it by his own lips four times. John, tell them, I am the first and the last. What does that mean? And the answer is, ask the Holy Spirit and search Genesis to Revelation and it will be an unfolding revelation what the fullness of that means. I want to spend all of my days searching out these 30 descriptions, understanding them more and more, making them, proclaiming them with greater depth and clarity. Now this title of first and last, again that was the last session we looked at, it refers to Jesus's destiny, his power, and his exaltation as a human being. Now we know he's fully God, and we know he's fully man. This title has particular reference to his humanity, whereas his title Alpha and Omega is a reference to his deity. Now Jesus used this title in context, the first and the last I mean, to his suffering as a man, to his death, and even to his resurrection. We're going to look at a moment that the the title firstborn from the dead elaborates on Jesus's first and the last, related to his resurrection, death and resurrection. Now in Revelation 2, just a quick little snapshot, verse 8, Jesus is speaking, he says, these things says the first and the last. Jesus is saying, I'm telling you who I am as the one with the title called the first and the last. Then he identifies this title to his death and resurrection. He goes, what I mean is, I was the one who was dead, meaning I experienced all that you can experience of the human arena related to death. I walked in it, but the good news is I walked through it and came out with life. He goes, therefore, verse 10, don't be afraid concerning the things you're about to suffer. Well Lord, I don't want to suffer, but there is martyrdom appointed to the church throughout history, but particularly in the generation he comes, back to the earth. He says, don't be afraid. If you know me as the first and the last, you know that it's going to end well, and that I will be with you in power, and I will respond with eternal rewards beyond anything you can imagine if you're faithful with me, because I understand what it is to walk through this. I did it as a man. Paragraph C. Again, we're still in review from the last session. Jesus, as the first and the last, it emphasizes his sovereignty and his preeminence over everything as a man. I mean, there is a one man who is preeminent over everything, and of course, that's what we're going to look at in a moment. That verse 5, chapter 1 verse 5, which is the theme of this session, we're going to look at his preeminence as the faithful witness, as the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. His preeminence is highlighted in three different ways in chapter 1 verse 5, which we'll get to in a few moments. Paragraph D. As a man, as the first and the last, he has the first place of authority. He has the first place of honor. He is the first source of all blessing. Everything that you possess that is good, he is the first cause and the source of it, and the good news is this. If he is the original source of that blessing, and persecution comes your way, and you lose it in a temporary way, you can be sure if he's the source that gave it to you originally, he can return it all back to you in a far greater measure than you've ever had it before. He's the source. It's the first and the last. Roman number 2. Now, we'll look at the verse in focus tonight. Revelation 1 5. It says in verse 5, let's read it. Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, the ruler over the kings of the earth. Three titles. Now this sums up Jesus's human destiny as the one who is called the first and the last. Now you'll have to think on this later. You'll say, okay, I think I got that. I don't think I have that. What? These three titles, each one of them are a mountain in and of itself. They describe Jesus's human destiny as the one that has first place in preeminence, and the one who is the last, the end result, and the end goal of everything. John goes on and says in verse 5, to him who loved us. So this preeminent one loves us. He loves us so much he paid the price to remove everything that gets in the way of us entering into our destiny under his leadership. And here's our destiny, verse 6. Forever. It begins in this age, in part, but forever, the destiny of the redeemed is to be kings and priests to God forever. And again, there's significant implications to those two aspects of our eternal destiny as the redeemed. But then he goes on to the ultimate, and he says, where is this thing going? That he's the preeminent one as the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. We have a human destiny under his leadership as kings and priests. Where's it going? John says it clear. To him, that's the Father, be glory, and to the Father be dominion. And what that means is dominion on the earth. Where this is going is that Jesus is orchestrating a big vision that we're deeply involved with, where the Father will have dominion over all the earth forever. That's what's on Jesus's mind. Jesus comes back, begins the Millennial Kingdom, but his goal over a thousand years is to prepare the earth for the Father to come and establish his throne upon the earth and have dominion on the earth forever. That's the end goal of what he's after. Beloved, you want to read Revelation 1 verse 5 and 6 and 7, throw in verse 7, over and over and over. You want to lock into those three verses, meditate much on them. Long and loving meditation, because in this one passage, verse 5, 6, and 7, we see his human destiny. He is the first and the last. In other words, the preeminent, that's the first, and the last, he's the end result, the goal, the end product, and everything related to the realm of truth. All truth has its beginning and end in him, but it doesn't end with truth. That's part of Jesus's human destiny to be manifest as the one in whom all truth begins and ends in him. That's only one part of his destiny. He is the firstborn from the dead, the realm of the resurrection. Everything that pertains to the new creation, the realm of the resurrection, everything that pertains to it, he is the first and the last of that realm as well, as a man. A man, a Jewish man, is the initiator, the first, the preeminent, the first, the last, the end goal of everything to do with the realm of the resurrection. These are big truths. I was talking about these earlier. I say, these truths are so much bigger, I was saying earlier today, than my understanding, but they beckon me to come. So the Spirit is saying, if you have courage, climb these three mountains. These are mountains of truth. They're vast. They're bigger than we think. The third realm that Jesus, of Jesus's human destiny, is the fact of he has the government over the earth forever as a man. He came to receive the government of the earth. So I have the passage broken down there a little bit. I've written it out so you can take your time on your own and kind of like, because there's a lot of ideas here, jammed in three verses. Now I'm going to add verse 7. I, just for sake of space, I didn't put it in. It all begins in verse 7 with a dramatic, global event called Jesus coming in the clouds, witnessed by every believer and unbeliever in the earth. That's how this grand scheme goes to the next level, this grand plan, where Jesus's preeminence is seen openly by all. Right now it's truth that we take by faith. We can see evidence of it through the eye of faith. But in verse 7, John tells us, behold, a day is coming soon where there will be a dramatic, global event that ushers in this whole realm of reality where it will be openly seen by believers and unbelievers, and they will all bow down before Him. That's who this man Jesus is. Paragraph B. We're going to look at these three titles that are brought together. These, again, it's like a mountain range with three large peaks that are too big to get to the top of in this life. Mountain number one, He is the faithful witness. All truth begins and has its culmination in Him. All truth, big subject. Mountain number two, He is the firstborn from the dead. He is the premier one in the realm of the resurrection and everything related to the resurrection, which is the new creation. Number three, He is the ruler of the kings of the earth. Now, just to give you a little background here, still in paragraph B, John is referencing a well-known Messianic prophecy. What I mean by Messianic, it's a prophecy about the Messiah from Psalm 89. Now, if you read Psalm 89, at first glance you think it's only about King David, and King David experienced some of this that was promised in Psalm 89, but we find with a more careful examination, it's bigger than David. It's the Son of David, Jesus of Nazareth. Verse 27, Psalm 89, God says, I will make Him David in a partial way, the Son of David, Jesus in the full way. I will make Him my firstborn. He will be the preeminent heir of everything I have, says God the Father. Wow. I will make this man, the Son of David, the highest of all the kings of the earth. Verse 35, and I've sworn I'm going to do this. Matter of fact, His reign as Messiah, as my premier firstborn heir, as the highest of the kings of the earth, His reign will continue as a faithful witness in the sky like the moon. In other words, His reign before God is reliable to continue as clearly as the sun and the moon will continue, so His reign will continue unbroken and unhindered. Now all three of these titles from Psalm 89, John brings them together as a summary of Jesus that unfolds throughout the entire book of Revelation. This is the summary of Jesus in the book of Revelation, these three titles. But they focus on Jesus's human destiny as, I mean, His destiny as a man. It's remarkable. They will all be fully expressed openly in the Millennial Kingdom at the time of His second coming. Let's look at top of page two. So let's just begin to break this down a little bit. Again, we're counting on the Holy Spirit. John chapter 16, verse 14, Jesus said, when the Spirit comes, He'll glorify me. He will declare me to your heart. He will preach Jesus to you if you ask Him to. So I take these verses, these, I mean, these 30 titles like a Holy Spirit teach them to me. I tell you, the Holy Spirit's the best teacher on Jesus that we can imagine, and He waits for us to ask Him to teach us. He will teach us as long as we continue the conversation with Him. Any of these 30 descriptions that you want to know about, as long as you keep talking about Him, He'll keep talking back to you about them. When you're not interested anymore, He'll change subjects and go with what you're interested in. That's, that's how He relates to us. That's kind of frightening. Because He lets us initiate the conversation, but He'll stay in it as long as we continue it. But He won't force us to have the conversation. He won't force feed us on any of these issues. So I say, Holy Spirit, teach me. Jesus is the faithful witness. Well, paragraph A, He is the first and the last, meaning the source, the preeminence, the full authority, and the last. He is the fullness. He is the end result, the end goal of all truth. Everything He is, everything He says, and everything He does is complete and perfect truth. That's a massive statement. He is reliable in everything He's ever said. Every promise that He's ever given, He says, I promise you, it is 100% reliable, even though the time may be delayed. He speaks the truth about love. He alone defines love. He speaks the truth about justice. Only in Him can we understand love or justice. Any definition of love on one end or justice on the other that's disassociated with the truth about Him will not be the truth about love or justice. He is the faithful witness of everything that's true. He's the truth about God. Whatever He says about God, it's the full truth. It's the complete. It's 100% true is what I'm trying to say. He's the truth about salvation. When He says there is no other way, beloved, there is no other way. No matter what religious logic some well-meaning person with a humanistic spirit comes up with, there is no other way. He did not lie about that. And when men stand before God, there will be no other way. So with boldness, we declare this because we know it to be true. He's the truth about hell. He's the truth about sin. Whatever He says about sin is true. He's the truth about judgment. He's the truth about eternity. He's the truth about rewards. He's the truth about the future. Whatever He says, it is the full truth. Though He may whisper it in one phrase, here and one phrase there, what John is saying, beloved, you can stake your whole life on what He says. There will be no deviation whatsoever from what He says, because it's who He is. What He is, what He says, and what He does is in perfect harmony. He's reliable. Now today's issues, the church is unsure about abortion. What Jesus says is the only truth about the sanctity of life. The issue of sexuality. And I'm not just talking about same-sex marriage. It's far bigger than that. The whole subject of sexuality in the church, heterosexual, homosexual, all different expressions, He alone is the truth on that subject. A lot of people are wavering. They're struggling with same-sex marriage, which is not the will of God at all. There's no question whatsoever. But beloved, there's a far bigger issue. It's not just homosexual immorality. It's heterosexual immorality in the church. That's a far bigger issue that the church is unsettled on. He's the only way to salvation. The church is rethinking that through. The church isn't sure about judgment. Beloved, He is the faithful witness. Still in paragraph 8. He's reliable. He doesn't hold back any negative truths. He gave rebukes, judgments. They were all faithful to love, and faithful to truth, and faithful to justice. Every one of His rebukes were faithful to love. Because He can't ever deny love when He exercises judgment. He's the faithful witness. He can't suspend one attribute to exercise another. He would not be the faithful witness if He did that even once. He doesn't exaggerate the positive truths. When He gives affirmation, He loves us like the Father loves Him. That is not an exaggeration. Oh, I love that. When He says, if you're faithful to Me, though everyone turns away from you, I will remember and reward you forever. Beloved, that's bigger than we could ever imagine in this age. He doesn't exaggerate anything. He never flatters. He never talks out of bitterness. Meaning, He doesn't get in a bad mood, and then talk too severe, and then regret it later. His evaluations are not too severe, and they're not too lenient. His judgments are not too late. They're not too early, because He would be, it would be a denial of Himself as a witness to the truth, if any of those things deviated one time in His entire eternal existence. He's the faithful witness. Oh, there's a lot more on that. That's just a beginning. I stare at that mountain of truth. I say, oh Lord, I hardly understand even the parameters of that glorious mountain. He is the first and the last of everything related to truth. That is remarkable as a man. I mean, it's one thing for God to be the fullness of truth, and we know that Jesus is fully God forever. But as a man, Jesus of Nazareth, He is the faithful witness full of truth. In every single way. He is the first and last of everything related to truth. Not just that He says it, He embodies it without even the slightest deviation or contradiction, or He would not be the faithful witness. That is His, one of His premier titles that gives our hearts confidence. Not only to believe what He said, but to search it out, and to fill our mind with the things He says. Beloved, He's not just a religious philosopher giving an opinion. He is absolute truth on all of these subjects. But the way in which God's people have a casual approach to cultivating truth and understanding, kind of, many just kind of read the word a little bit on the run. Do you know who the word is talking about? The one who is the faithful witness. We do well to fill our mind with truth. That we could better understand Him as the one that has no contradictions in anything He does or says or is. Well, let's move on to the second big mountaintop. This big mountain about Jesus's destiny as a man. He's the firstborn from the dead. That's a huge truth with vast consequences and implications. I'm the firstborn from the dead. What He's saying is, He is the first and last, and again, the preeminence, the source, the top authority, the main attraction, the main focus. He's first in all those ways, and He's the last in the whole realm related to the resurrection, the whole new creation. He is the source of the destiny of all of glorified humanity. This man is the source of my eternal destiny in the resurrection. When I, that connects with me a little bit, I am more grateful than ever to Him. But it's not just your destiny or mine. It's the several billion of the saints through history counting the great harvest. But He's not just over the resurrected humans. He's over the city, the New Jerusalem. That is a manifestation of the power of the resurrection glory of God. He's over the city. He is the one that determines how it operates. He's the one that determines who gets in it. He determines what role you will have in the city forever. He's over the resurrection in every way. The firstborn means He's preeminent. Well, the firstborn means several things we're going to look at, but He's the first in authority. Lord, I want to get in that city. He says, okay, good. Come to me. I've done that. Lord, I want to roll in the city. He says, that's all in my hands. And I will give you a role in the city based on the way that you love me in this age. Nobody will change my opinion of my evaluation of your life when you stand before me eye-to-eye on that day. I am over the entire realm of the resurrection. Amen. It's over all of us. Jesus, who are you? And of course the answer is, I am more than you think. I think John sort of had the idea he knew who the Lord was. Right here in chapter 1 verse 17, when the Lord shows him his glory, he falls like a dead man. I mean, he falls dead and Jesus could have said, John, it's just me. Or maybe you didn't really know me as well as you thought. I don't know. John could sort that out when we meet one day. He might say, Mike, you had it all wrong for years. I was falling like a dead man at the very beginning. You missed it a hundred percent. Well, he's the firstborn. Now being the firstborn means he's the preeminent heir. He's the heir in a unique category of honor and authority. Because the firstborn in the family got a double portion from everybody else. They were the heir of the family. That's what firstborn means. Well, it means more than that. Now what happens is John takes Psalm 89 verse 27 where the Messiah is called God's firstborn, the preeminent heir, and John expands that promise and adds firstborn from the dead. He's not just God's heir. He's the heir over the realm of the resurrection. The people, the servants in the city, which would be the angels, are replaced in the city. The government of the city, the plan of what will happen in the city for billions of years, he's over it all. One man's over it. He's over the city planning committee. He's already thought through what he's going to do in the city for a long, long time. Paragraph B. Colossians 1. Now Paul takes two ideas, which are really two facets of one great truth. And he refers to Jesus with two titles that are dynamically related. They point to the same reality, but different facets. Colossians 1. Paul expands on Psalm 89 verse 27 that the Messiah is the firstborn. And Paul writes this even before John does in the book of Revelation. Verse 15, Colossians 1. Jesus is the firstborn over all creation. Okay. Then verse 18, he's the firstborn from the dead. So there's two points, two truths, really two facets of one truth. The firstborn over all creation, he's the source of the natural creation, is the idea. He was the one that spoke in Genesis 1. And when the, when God said, let there be light, it was Jesus that was speaking. He's the source over natural creation, and he's the ruler of it, and he's the heir of it. So Paul makes that clear. Jesus is not just the firstborn in the general sense, but he's the owner and the preeminent one over natural creation. But then he takes it up a notch in verse 18. He's the firstborn over the new creation, the realm of the resurrection. And the reason he is over both realms, natural creation, and the new creation, is at the end of verse 18, because the father's ordained that he would have the preeminence in both realms forever. Paragraph C. Jesus is the firstborn from the dead. That means a number of things. I have written in the notes here. He's the first man, the first human, raised from the dead. So the firstborn from the dead, he's the first person ever raised from the dead, with a resurrected body. Now you say, now wait a second, Lazarus was raised from the dead. Lazarus was resuscitated in a supernatural way, but he still had a natural body, and he died again. When Jesus was raised from the dead, he received a supernatural physical body. It's physical, but supernatural. The first man, he's the only man right now with a resurrected body. Everybody else that's around the throne, they don't have their physical resurrected body yet. Their spirit man is before God. So he's the first man that was raised from the dead with a physical resurrected supernatural body. Therefore, he's the first man that conquered all of the enemies, all the enemies of the human race. He conquered death. A man looked at death straight in the face, walked through it, partook of it, broke the power of it as a man, and stood victorious over it. First man ever. As the firstborn from the dead, he's the first one in power over the realm of the dead. We've already said that. As the firstborn from the dead, he is the pledge. The firstborn, Scripture makes clear, includes the firstfruits. He's the pledge, meaning he's the guarantee of everybody else who believes in him having a body like he has. Because in Israel, they would bring the firstfruits of the harvest, and that firstfruit would be uniquely dedicated to God, and the firstfruit was the guarantee that a greater harvest was coming after it. So Jesus is the firstfruit. He is the pledge. He is the guarantee that there's a harvest of millions of resurrected believers following behind him. He's the guarantee, the pledge. He's the firstfruit. He's the firstfruit from the dead, in the sense, he's the source of the resurrection. He's not just the first, and the guarantee, the power of it is generated by him, as a man. Like, what is this? You mean as God? Well, don't separate his deity and humanity too precisely, or in your religious pride, you'll get into all kinds of error. Those are truths we look at, and we bow down in worship, and we say, great is the mystery, without any controversy, great is the mystery, fully God, fully man, God came in the flesh. But a man, a man is the power source of several billion with resurrected bodies that comes from a man. Like, what? No, really, like, ouch, that hurts me, that, that feels so good, that perplexes me so bad, that it's out of my grasp so far, the whole thing hurts me, yet I love it. It's a paradox. This whole thing just bothers me, but beckons me. I want to know this man. The Holy Spirit says, good. Do you want to know him as the firstborn? Talk to me about it. I'll keep the conversation going, as long as you continue it, I will keep talking back to you about it. You got a Bible, Genesis to Revelation. God has much to say to us about Jesus as the firstborn. Well, paragraph D, I have already mentioned, he is the pledge, or the guarantee, that's what firstfruits means as well. Now, this is remarkable, I just threw this in here because I love this. Philippians 3, Jesus will transform our broken weak body, that it would be conformed to his, his resurrected body. Now, this is according to the working by which Jesus, the man, fully God, fully man. Jesus is able to do this. He is the power source of it. This man is. Now, what kind of glorious body did Jesus have? Luke 24, verse 39. When he appeared in the resurrection, after the resurrection, he looked at him. He said, touch me, handle me. They were looking at him absolutely awestruck. He walks through the wall. They're looking at him. Now, you look like Jesus to us. He said, it's me. Touch me. He ate a meal with him. Physical food he ate with a resurrected body. He ate the fish. I have to say it, Alan Hood, he got me going on this. Then he walked through the wall. Alan said, did the fish go through the wall with him? We don't know. I brought that up to Alan a few times. He goes, oh, move on. That was just a joke. That just bugs me. I got to know now, Alan. You got me going. I want some intern to find this from the Holy Spirit and tell me the answer. Just email me directly at alanhood at ihub.org, and I'll make sure you get an answer. Matter of fact, send all your questions. That's okay. He says, handle me. Touch me. Look what he says. He goes, a spirit doesn't have flesh. Like what? F-L-E-S-H. Flesh and bones. Jesus says, I have an elbow. Touch me. I have a real, I have real bones. Touch me. Resurrected physical bones. And I have flesh. Well, the, when I first began to ponder this, I said, yeah, but Paul the Apostle said, flesh and blood doesn't inherit the kingdom. And it's clear between, from those two passages, there is a supernatural flesh that's different than the flesh that's kept alive by natural blood. Because natural flesh with blood flowing through, to strengthen it, that cannot enter the realm of the resurrection. But there's another kind of flesh that we don't know about, but we will be very familiar with it not long from now. Flesh and bones. We will have a body like him. Top of page three. Well, he's more than just the guarantee and the pledge. He's the source. First Corinthians 15, Paul said, by a man, that's Adam, came death. But he goes in the same way, by a man came the resurrection. It's by a man that the resurrection came. Remember the verse we just looked at in Philippians 3, where it says that he is able, Jesus is able, by the working of his power, to subdue all death. We say, okay, Jesus is the source of the resurrection. Wow. It comes by a man. Okay. Now you say, so what? Here's why the so what. It's the glory of who this man is that beckons us to love him and obey him. Beloved, he's worth it. His glory is beyond anything we're capturing in this age. Well, Jesus talked about this, how the resurrection would come by him. He said in John 5, talking about himself, all who are in the graves, all that are in the graves will hear his voice. Jesus is talking about his own, the third person. He says, the voice of the Son of Man, that's him. When the Son of Man speaks, everyone in the grave will come forth by his word. Some to the resurrection of life, if they've done good. The others, they will come forth with a resurrected body, but they will come forth to a resurrection of condemnation. Beloved, they will receive a supernatural body in which they will endure the judgments of God forever in. That is terrifying to me. You had Daniel chapter 12, verse 3, where the angel told Daniel there would be a resurrection, physical resurrection, of the righteous and the unrighteous, and it will go on forever. Well, paragraph F, you say, now wait a second, you're stressing that Jesus is the source of the resurrection, and the reason I'm stressing it, because several verses make it clear. However, it's not the whole picture. Paragraph F, and I don't want to spend too much time on this, though it's awesome, the truth behind this paragraph, talk about the divine truth, all three persons of the Godhead, Father, Son, and Spirit, all participated in Jesus's resurrection. John 10, here's what Jesus says. I have the power to lay my life down, but look carefully, I, me, Jesus, I have the power to raise myself again. I have the power. He made it clear. I have sufficient power to break the power of death myself. Who are you? Now, that's not funny. I'm talking about in the most serious way. Who are you? Well, the scripture doesn't end there. The Father raised Jesus from the dead. It doesn't end there. Romans 8, verse 11, the Spirit raised Jesus from the dead. Well, who did it? Well, it's clear, the end of paragraph F, each of the three persons of the Godhead, their work, catch this, it's unified, inseparable, and interdependent. They are fully involved, Father, Son, and Spirit, with every work of God, from eternity past to eternity future, they are fully united, interdependent, inseparable, involved in every work. They were all three involved in creation, incarnation, atonement, resurrection, and so that's the bigger picture, but I want to highlight in context of the big picture that Jesus Himself is the firstborn from the dead. He is the pledge and the source of resurrected power, and the preeminent heir over everything pertaining to the resurrection. Let's, well, it goes on. Let's look at paragraph G. Look at paragraph 2 under G, just to skip a little bit here for time's sake. Jesus not only is the firstborn of the dead, He's over the realm of the resurrection, and He's the firstborn of a creation. He's over all of the natural creation and the new creation both. He beckons us to join Him in partnership. We will be priests and kings, and we will reign with Him forever. He identifies or associates the destiny of the redeemed in verse 6, chapter 1, verse 6. Our destiny is connected to who He is in the grandeur of the man who is the firstborn of the dead. We're raised from the dead, and we're kings and priests with resurrected bodies forever under His leadership, and we owe it to the source of His goodness and His power. Let's look at the third and final point. Jesus is not only over the realm of truth, the first and last of truth. He's not only the first and the last related to the realm of the resurrection. He's also the first and the last related to the eternal government of the earth. This is the third category in chapter 1, verse 5, that are all expressions of Him as first and last. These three, again, are all summaries together. You've got to bring them all together of who Jesus is in the book of Revelation. It starts out, again, chapter 1, verse 5, 6, and 7. We need all three of those together. Again, I want to say it again. In your... Wait. Just... Just stay focused for a minute. Just forget all that. Don't worry about it. No, I really, I don't want you to be silly right now. Just be focused. I'm talking to you about something really serious. Just stay locked in for just a minute here. Jesus is the captain of our salvation. This man, chapter 1, verse 5, 6, and 7, I want to charge you to give yourself to long and loving meditation on who this man is. Those three verses. Ask the Holy Spirit. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you with clarity. I mean, I would take months and years on those three verses over and over. I don't mean that's the only thing you read, but you stay with it. And you don't let go of it. You say, Lord, how big is this? This mountain range of these three verses is worth an entire life of investing ourself into him. Now, let's read chapter 1, verse 5 and 6. Jesus is the ruler over the kings of the earth. He's over the realm of the eternal government of the earth as a man. Verse 5, he's the ruler over the kings of the earth. And to him, now watch where this is going, he determined that the Father would have dominion. That's a very significant phrase. The Father only talks twice in the book of Revelation. I don't have this written down here. But he only talks twice in the book of Revelation. Chapter 1, 8 and chapter 21, verse 3. Both times the Father talks. He references that he wants to come and take over the earth. He's coming to the earth. That's how big this realm of truth is. Jesus is locked into this idea that the Father would have dominion on the earth. Now the seraphim around the throne in Revelation 4, 8, you know the living creatures that go, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, to him who was and is to come. That means he is to come to the earth. The seraphim, night and day forever, proclaim the Father is to come. He's coming to the earth. He's coming to the earth. He's coming to the earth. And they never ever cease to give witness to that truth around the throne, ever. And the Father said in chapter 21, verse 3, I will set up my tabernacle with human beings on the earth forever. And here John incorporates this vast idea. The whole point in Jesus's focus is that the Father would have dominion with his people, through his people, on the earth forever, through the voluntary love in relationship with his people, under Jesus's authority. I mean imagine, the Father with full dominion, but it's not just an arbitrary rule in a vacuum. It's a dominion that is exercised through people, under Jesus's leadership, through their voluntary love and their voluntary submission and obedience. The Father's dominion is manifest through them. That's where this thing is going. That's what our life is about. Now, Psalm 89 said that he would be the highest of the kings of the earth, the Messiah. So John expands this problem, this promise, the highest of the kings of the earth, and he includes that he would be the ruler over all the kings of the earth. Psalm 89, verse 27, says he'll be the highest king. The Holy Spirit says to John, he'll be over all the kings, not just the highest. He will be the highest, and all the kings will be under him forever. Top of page four. Most of this is familiar territory, at least conceptually it is. So I'll just be brief. B, the theme of the book of Revelation is the kingship of Jesus over all the earth. C, the Father decreed the nations, all of them would be his inheritance. D, in the millennium, all the kings will worship him. E, Daniel saw the vision of the Son of Man. All the nations will serve him and obey him. F, Jesus quoting Daniel 7. He says, I will come on a throne of glory. I will set it up in Jerusalem, and all the nations will come to me. Paragraph G, one of the high points of Scripture concerning Jesus' human destiny in the age to come, all the power, the riches, the wisdom, the strength, the honor, the glory, the blessing, all of it will be his and openly seen for all the world to see throughout the entire millennial kingdom. All the power, all the governmental authority will be under one man. All the riches, all the wealth and natural resources will be under his leadership in the millennium. All the wisdom and insight, all the strength, all the glory of every human being in the nation, all the honor, all the blessing, every single government will bless his policies and fully cooperate with his leadership. That's where he's going. That's what his destiny is. He's the ruler of the kings of the earth, and where he wants to take that is that his father then, at the end of the millennium, the Father comes and all the nations are brought under Jesus' leadership, and then Jesus offers a submitted world and globe to the Father, and then Jesus submits himself to the Father, and he says, Father, 1 Corinthians 15 28, I did it so that you would be all in all, that you would have dominion over all things. That's why I came and obeyed. I wanted your dominion to supersede mine. That's 1 Corinthians 15 28. I don't have that on the notes. Then in Roman numeral 6, how do you respond? It's the acronym that I say each session. The three responses, A-R-K-A, agree with them. Simply say, with a, have your opportunity or whatever, be prepared to journal, whether you're typing it or writing it. I always have a notebook there, or a pad, when I have personal prayer. Not always, but almost always. We simply agree. We just say simple things like, Jesus, you are the faithful witness. I love you. Thank you that you are the faithful witness. Beloved, do you regularly declare that to him? If you do, the Spirit will give you more. Even in your own mouth, while you're saying it, you'll say some other phrases, and the Spirit will be teaching you about it. Take time to say to Jesus, You are the faithful witness. With adoration and with gratitude. You are the firstborn. I rejoice in your prominence and your preeminence. You are the ruler of the kings of the earth. All the kings of the earth will bow before you. I love your greatness. Just make simple declarations. If all this is, is a sermon and a handout, and it never gets in your mouth, in your talk, in your conversation with God, these truths will never move you. They will just be verses you underline in your Bible and move on. These phrases must get in your mouth in your conversation with the Lord. Just say it to him, you are the faithful witness, and a few phrases will come as you say it. Then are, reveal yourself to me as the faithful witness. Show me your glory as the firstborn from the dead. And it might be you've never asked him to show you himself as the firstborn from the dead. I've got this idea that many believers go their entire life, and they've never asked him once to show himself as the firstborn from the dead. It's the most glorious aspect of his human destiny, and our human destiny is related to it. We need to ask him, show us what this vast mountain of truth and glory means. In paragraph D, keep the prophecy. K, keep it, respond to it. I like to say phrases like, Lord, I want to be a faithful witness. I want to stand for truth like you did. Or you're the ruler of the kings of the earth. I acknowledge your kingship over my time, my money. I acknowledge your kingship over my appetites, over my relationships. You are the king. I acknowledge that, and I want to obey you. Help me to obey you, O great ruler of the kings of the earth. Amen. Let's stand. Jesus, faithful witness, firstborn and ruler of the kings of the earth. Holy Spirit, we ask you, in our shallowness, in our dullness, in our inability to even be touched by these grand truths. I'm talking about me. I'm not praying for you guys right now. I'm talking about me. So you know, in my dullness, in my shallowness, in my inability to be moved by these grand truths, help me. Help me. It is tragic that I could continue not more deeply moved by such grand realities. It's not okay with me that I'm not moved more, that I don't see more. It's not okay with me, Holy Spirit. I want you just to say your own phrases. Whisper them to him. It's not okay with me that this doesn't move me. It's not okay with me that I don't get it, even the beginning of it. It's not okay that my spirit's so dull when you're so great, and you're so freely available. It's not okay with me. Lord, help me. I have confidence that you will. Tell him that. Say, I have confidence you'll help me. I know you will. And the Lord will give. He won't force-feed anyone. He'll give according to our hunger. If we want this, and we stay with it, He will talk to us for years on these subjects. I'm gonna invite anybody that would like prayer related to this. I mean, we all want to grow in this, but you say, no, I feel specifically I need prayer tonight related to this. I mean, all of us, our spirit is dull. There might be a few exceptions. I know my spirit's far too dull. I can't bear it. I want a vibrant spirit, a whole nother level. You're saying, I'm desperate tonight for prayer. Go ahead and come up to these lines if you want to. I got to get a breakthrough in this. Again, we all want a breakthrough, but I mean, if you say, I need prayers tonight. I mean, I'm sick at where my heart is related to these grand truths. I tell you, He's so willing. I'm sure He will speak to us. He'll speak to some tonight, but I'm talking about the weeks and months, years ahead. Lock into those three verses, chapter 1, verse 5 to 7. Don't graduate from them, even though you focus on other passages many times. Always go back to those three verses. Go another round, another trip up the mountain, but the Holy Spirit is your escort. Lord, here we are. We're in need of Thee. We are in need of Thee. We're in great need, but we have confidence. We are so confident. You want to talk to us. Jesus. Jesus, who art. Lord, we love you. There's no way to measure what you're worth. We want more of you, Jesus.