‘Day 337

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral persons, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying. “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you of these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” Revelation 22:13,16. (NASB)

At the beginning of Revelation, Jesus spoke directly to te seven churches. He then related the messages for John to the angel. But at this point (from v11), Christ begins to speak directly again as He closes the book of Revelation. He is saying, “Hold on. I am coming. You can depend on me!” “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” Christ speaks frankly in the conclusion of the book of Revelation, so listen carefully.

Even among Christians, there are those who take sin lightly. “I’m not so bad.” “God isn’t that particular.” They do not seem to realize that forsaking sin is a crucial need in the Christian life. While our performance does not save us, a pattern of sin can have such a deep impact on our lives that we lose our way in the end. Here again, Jesus has witnessed to His divinity by taking the divine title from Isaiah’s Messianic Poems. 
We began this journey by looking at the 7 churches. While the church can offer a foretaste of heaven, it is not heaven in the fullest sense. It is very much a part of the great battle at the centre of focus in Revelation. The church family is made up of human beings with a great number of imperfections.

In Revelation Jesus offers a clear testimony concerning the churches. This is not only true of the first three chapters of the book but of the entire book according to this text. Every vision, every beast, every blessing, every war, every song of praise is designed to instruct the churches. 
One thing is clear. The churches are not whitewashed in the book. Jesus applies searching scrutiny to the churches and portrays their characters and experiences with rigorous honesty. While there are faithful ones in the churches, the people of God are far from perfect. They deeply need the cleansing that comes from the blood of the Lamb (Rev 1:5-6; 7:14; 12:11). They look forward to the transformation of all things that Jesus will affect when He comes.