Revelation 1:5
"โฆand 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 bloodโฆ"
John writes these words from exile on the island of Patmos. He is the last surviving apostle, cut off from the churches he served, and the churches themselves are small, scattered, and under pressure. If ever a man had reason to write about his own hardship, it was John. Instead, he writes about Jesus โ and notice what he does first. Before he mentions a single thing Jesus does, he says who Jesus is toward us: the one who loves us.
That word in the present tense matters. Not "the one who loved us once." Not "the one who will love us when we get it together." Loves. Right now. In the middle of a week that may be going well or may be going badly, the Son of God has His heart set on His people, and nothing in the world has changed that.
And John does not stop at affection. "Has freed us from our sins by his blood." Past tense, completed. Love here isn't a feeling that stays at a distance and wishes us well. It comes all the way down, pays the debt we owed, and lets us go. The same one who rules the kings of the earth has made Himself the servant of our rescue.
Then John names Him something surprising: the faithful witness. A witness is someone who tells the truth about what they have seen, whatever it costs. Jesus bore faithful witness to the Father's love at the cost of His life โ and rose to prove the testimony true. He is the firstborn of the dead, the first fruits of a harvest that includes every one of us who belongs to Him. He is the ruler of kings on earth โ which means the powers that seem to run the world are not the last word. He is.
So what do we do with this?
Rest in it. The love that saved you is not sustained by your performance this week. Your standing rests on His blood, not your record.
Return to it. When sin has made you feel far off, the answer is not to work your way back. It is to look again at the One who has freed you, and to hear absolution for what it is โ His own word to you.
Tell it. You are, by His grace, a witness too. Not a witness to your own goodness, but to His. Say what you have seen Him do.
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