Revelation 1:18

'And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.'Revelation 1:17-18. LOW THOUGHTS OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST are exceedingly mischievous to believers. If you sink your estimate of him you shift everything else in the same proportion.

His having passed through death as one of us, and now living in the infinite plenitude of life, reassures His people, since through Him death is the gate of resurrection to eternal life. have . . . keys of hell--Greek, "Hades"; Hebrew, "Sheol." "Hell" in the sense, the place of torment, answers to a different Greek word, namely, Gehenna.

THEN Hell and death, terrible powers as they are, are not left to riot without government. Death is a land of darkness, as darkness itself, without any order, yet a Sovereign eye surveys it and a master hand holds its key. Hell, also, is a horrible region where powers of evil and of terror hold their high court and dread assembly—but Hell trembles at the Presence of the Lord and there is a Throne higher than the throne of evil.

'And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.'Revelation 1:17-18. LOW THOUGHTS OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST are exceedingly mischievous to believers. If you sink your estimate of him you shift everything else in the same proportion. He who thinks lightly of the Savior thinks so much the less of the evil of sin; and, consequently, he becomes callous as to the past, careless as to the present, and venturesome as to the future. He thinks little of the punishment due to sin, because he has small notions of the atonement made for sin. Christian activity for right is also abated; as well as holy horror of wrong. He who thinks lightly of the Lord Jesus renders to him but small service; he does not estimate the Redeemer's love at a rate high enough to stir his soul to ardor; if he does not count the blood wherewith he was redeemed an unholy thing, yet he thinks it a small matter, not at all sufficient to claim from him life-long service. Gratitude is weak when favors are undervalued. He serves little who loves little, and he loves little who has no sense of having been greatly beloved. The man who thinks lightly of Christ also has but poor comfort as to his own security. With a little Savior I am still in danger, but if he be the mighty God, able to save unto the uttermost, then am I safe in his protecting hand, and my consolations are rich and abounding. In these, and a thousand other ways, an unworthy estimate of our Lord will prove most solemnly injurious. The Lord deliver us from this evil. If our conceptions of the Lord Jesus are very enlarged, they will only be his due. We cannot exaggerate here. He deserves higher praise than we can ever render to him.

WE long, sometimes, to behold Christ in His Glory. Certainly, it is one of our brightest hopes that we shall see Him as He is. Every true Believer can say, with Job, "I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another." But, Brothers and Sisters, as we are now constituted, we are quite unfit for the vision of our Master's Glory. It was well that, when He was on earth, He veiled himself in the form of man, for when He did lift up the veil a little, as He did on the Mountain of Transfiguration, the sight, though it was but a glimpse, was too much for Peter, James and John. They were overpowered by it! They fell asleep on the holy mount and even when they were awake, they knew not what to say. And as we now are, if we could be favored with a sight of Christ in His Glory, it would be too much for us, also. It was too much, even, for John, and we are far inferior to him—our eyes are not as clear and strong as his were— yet he could not endure that wondrous vision! The gray old saint in Patmos had been familiar with his Master more years than most of us have known Him. He had laid his head upon the Savior's bosom—a privilege accorded to none beside himself. He had stood at the Cross and seen the blood and water flow from that dear heart that loved him so well and yet, though he was "that disciple whom Jesus loved," when he had a sight of his glorified Master, he fell at His feet as dead! The full Glory of Christ is too much for us to behold while we are here on the earth, so ask not to have it yet, dear Friends.

THEN Hell and death, terrible powers as they are, are not left to riot without government. Death is a land of darkness, as darkness itself, without any order, yet a Sovereign eye surveys it and a master hand holds its key. Hell, also, is a horrible region where powers of evil and of terror hold their high court and dread assembly—but Hell trembles at the Presence of the Lord and there is a Throne higher than the throne of evil. Let us rejoice that nothing in Heaven, or earth, or in places under the earth is left to itself to engender anarchy. Everywhere, serene above the floods, the Lord sits King forever and ever! No province of the universe is free from the Divine rule. Things do not come by chance. Nowhere does chance and chaos reign. Nowhere is evil really and permanently enthroned. Rest assured that the Lord has prepared His Throne in the heavens and His kingdom rules over all—for if the lowest Hell and Death bow to His government, much more all things that are on this lower world. It is delightful for us to observe, as we read this chapter, that government of Hell and of Death is vested in the Person of the Man Christ Jesus. He who holds the keys of these dreadful regions is described by John as, "One like unto the Son of Man," and we know that He was our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. John saw a strange and glorious change in Him, but still recognized the old likeness, perhaps impressed by the nail-prints and other marks of manhood which he had seen in Him while yet He was in the days of His flesh.

WE long, sometimes, to behold Christ in His Glory. Certainly, it is one of our brightest hopes that we shall see Him as He is. Every true Believer can say, with Job, "I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another."

I am he that liveth, and was dead - I was indeed once dead, but now I live, and shall continue to live forever. This would at once identify him who thus appeared as the Lord Jesus Christ, for to no one else could this apply. He had been put to death; but he had risen from the grave. This also is given as a reason why John should not fear; and nothing would allay his fears more than this. He now saw that he was in the presence of that Saviour whom more than half a century before he had so tenderly loved when in the flesh, and whom, though now long absent, he had faithfully served, and for whose cause he was now in this lonely island. His faith in his resurrection had not been a delusion; he saw the very Redeemer before him who had once been laid in the tomb. Behold, I am alive forevermore - I am to live forever. Death is no more to cut me down, and I am never again to slumber in the grave. As he was always to live, he could accomplish all his promises, and fulfil all his purposes. The Saviour is never to die again. He can, therefore, always sustain us in our troubles; he can be with us in our death. Whoever of our friends die, he will not die; when we die, he will still be on the throne. Amen - A word here of strong affirmation - as if he had said, it is “truly,” or “certainly so.” See the notes on Rev 1:7. This expression is one that the Saviour often used when he wished to give emphasis, or to express anything strongly. Compare Joh 3:3; Joh 5:25. And have the keys of hell and of death - The word rendered “hell” - ᾅδης Hadēs, “Hades” - refers properly to the underworld; the abode of departed spirits; the region of the dead. This was represented as dull and gloomy; as enclosed with walls; as entered through gates which were fastened with bolts and bars. […]