I AM the Spirit in the Body (Revelations of the Soul Book 1)

What this point of the vision means we shall see presently. Is this tremendous figure like the Christ on whose bosom John had leaned? Yes; for one chief purpose of this book is to make us feel that the exalted Jesus is the same in all essentials as the lowly Jesus. The heart that beats beneath the golden girdle is the same that melted with pity and overflowed with love here. The hands that bear the seven stars are those that were pierced with nails. The eyes that flash fire are those that dropped tears at a grave and over Jerusalem.

His gracious words to John tell us this and more. Soothingly He laid the hand with the stars in it on the terrified Apostle, and gentle words, which he had heard Him say many a time on earth, came soothingly from the mouth from which the sword proceeded. How the calming graciousness rises into majesty!

The glorified Christ claims to have been before all creatures, and to be the end to which all tend. Verse 18 should be more closely connected with the preceding than in Authorized Version. Mark how, in these solemn words, the threefold state of the eternal Word is set forth, in His pre-incarnate fullness of Divine life, in His submission to death, in His resurrection, and in His ascended glory, as Lord of life and death, and of all worlds. Does our faith grasp all these? We shall never understand His life and death on earth, unless we see before them the eternal dwelling of the Word with God, and after them the exaltation of His manhood to the throne of the universe.

The charge to the Apostle, which follows on this transcendent revelation, has two parts-the command to write his visions, and the explanation of the symbols of the stars and the candlesticks. As to the explanation of the symbols, stars are always, in Scripture, emblems of authority, and here they are clearly so. It is impossible to enter on the discussion of these views here, and we can only say that, in our judgment, the opinion that the angels are the bishops of the churches is the most probable.

The seven candlesticks are the seven churches. The formal unity of the ancient church, represented by the one candlestick with its seven branches, is exchanged for the real unity which arises from the presence of Christ in the midst. The old candlestick is at the bottom of the Mediterranean. The unity of the Church does not depend on compression into one organization, but on all its parts being clustered around Jesus.

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Each church should be light. That light must be derived. There is only one unkindled and unfed light-that of Jesus Christ. So we should each be content to blend our little twinkle in the common light. Benson Commentary Revelation 1: I was in the Spirit — That is, in a trance, a prophetic vision; so overwhelmed with the power, and filled with the light of the Holy Spirit, as to be insensible of outward things, and wholly taken up with spiritual and divine. What follows is one single, connected vision, which St.

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John saw in one day: The other prophetic books are collections of distinct prophecies, given upon various occasions. But here is one single treatise, whereof all the parts exactly depend on each other. And what is delivered in the 4th chapter goes on directly to the 22d. On this the ancients believed he would come to judgment. It was therefore with the utmost propriety that St. John on this day both saw and described his coming.

And I heard behind me — St.

John had his face to the east: The argument drawn in the preceding note upon it would have been strong, wherever such a passage as this had been found; but its immediate connection with this greatly strengthens it. This command extends to the whole book. All the books of the New Testament were written by the will of God: To Ephesus — Mr.

Thomas Smith, who, in the year , travelled through all these cities, observes, that from Ephesus to Smyrna is forty-six English miles; from Smyrna to Pergamos, sixty-four; from Pergamos to Thyatira, forty-eight; from Thyatira to Sardis, thirty- three; from Sardis to Philadelphia, twenty-seven; and from Philadelphia to Laodicea, about forty-two miles. Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary 1: The day and time when he had this vision was the Lord's day, the Christian sabbath, the first day of the week, observed in remembrance of the resurrection of Christ.

Let us who call him Our Lord, honour him on his own day. The name shows how this sacred day should be observed; the Lord's day should be wholly devoted to the Lord, and none of its hours employed in a sensual, worldly manner, or in amusements. He was in a serious, heavenly, spiritual frame, under the gracious influences of the Spirit of God. Those who would enjoy communion with God on the Lord's day, must seek to draw their thoughts and affections from earthly things.

And if believers are kept on the Lord's holy day, from public ordinances and the communion of saints, by necessity and not by choice, they may look for comfort in meditation and secret duties, from the influences of the Spirit; and by hearing the voice and contemplating the glory of their beloved Saviour, from whose gracious words and power no confinement or outward circumstances can separate them. An alarm was given as with the sound of the trumpet, and then the apostle heard the voice of Christ.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible I was in the Spirit - This cannot refer to his own spirit, for such an expression would be unintelligible. The language then must refer to some unusual state, or to some influence that had been brought to bear upon him from without, that was appropriate to such a day. The word "Spirit" may refer either to the Holy Spirit, or to some state of mind such as the Holy Spirit produces - a spirit of elevated devotion, a state of high and uncommon religious enjoyment.

It is clear that John does not mean here to say that he was under the influence of the Holy Spirit in such a sense as that he was inspired, for the command to make a record, as well as the visions, came subsequently to the time referred to.

The fair meaning of the passage is, that he was at that time favored, in a large measure, with the influences of the Holy Spirit - the spirit of true devotion; that he had a high state of religious enjoyment, and was in a condition not inappropriate to the remarkable communications which were made to him on that day. The state of mind in which he was at the time here referred to, is not such as the prophets are often represented to have been in when under the prophetic inspiration compare Ezekiel 1: He was not yet under the prophetic ecstasy compare Acts This state was not inappropriate to the revelations which were about to be made to John, but this itself was not that state.

It was a state which seems to have resulted from the fact, that on that desert island he devoted the day to the worship of God, and, by honoring the day dedicated to the memory of the risen Saviour, found, what all will find, that it was attended with rick spiritual influences on his soul. It properly means "pertaining to the Lord"; and, so far as this word is concerned, it might mean a day "pertaining to the Lord," in any sense, or for any reason; either because he claimed it as his own, and had set it apart for his own service, or because it was designed to commemorate some important event pertaining to him, or because it was observed in honor of him.

The term was used generally by the early Christians to denote the first day of the week. It occurs twice in the Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians about a. The strong probability is, that the name was given to this day in honor of the Lord Jesus, and because he rose on that day from the dead. No one can doubt that it was an appellation given to the first day of the week; and the passage, therefore, proves: He had manifestly, in accordance with a prevailing custom, set apart this day in honor of the Lord Jesus.

The truth behind full salvation: body, soul, and spirit

Though alone, he was engaged on that day in acts of devotion. Though far away from the sanctuary, he enjoyed what all Christians hope to enjoy on such a day of rest, and what not a few do in fact enjoy in its observance. We may remark, in view of this statement: If on a bed of sickness, if in a land of strangers, if on the deep, if in a foreign clime, if on a lonely island, as John was, where we have none of the advantages of public worship, we should yet honor the Sabbath.

We should worship God alone, if we have none to unite with us; we should show to those around us, if we are with strangers, by our dress and our conversation, by a serious and devent manner, by abstinence from labor, and by a resting from travel, that we devoutly regard this day as set apart for God. It was on a lonely island, far away from the sanctuary and from the society of Christian friends, that the Saviour met "the beloved disciple," and we may trust it will be so with us.

For on such a desert island, in a lonely forest, on the deep, or amid strangers in a foreign land, he can as easily meet us as in the sanctuary where we have been accustomed to worship, and when surrounded by all the privileges of a Christian land. No man, at home or abroad, among friends or strangers, enjoying the privileges of the sanctuary, or deprived of those privileges, ever kept the Christian Sabbath in a devout manner without profit to his own soul; and, when deprived of the privileges of public worship, the visitations of the Saviour to the soul may be more than a compensation for all our privations.

Who would not be willing to be banished to a lonely island like Patmos, if he might enjoy such a glorious vision of the Redeemer as John was favored with there? Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary I was—Greek, "I came to be"; "I became. While the prophet "speaks" in the Spirit, the apocalyptic seer is in the Spirit in his whole person. The spirit only that which connects us with God and the invisible world is active, or rather recipient, in the apocalyptic state. With Christ this being "in the Spirit" was not the exception, but His continual state. This is the earliest mention of the term, "the Lord's day.

The name corresponds to "the Lord's Supper," 1Co Justin Martyr [Apology, 2. On the day before Saturday they crucified Him; and on the day after Saturday, which is Sunday, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught these things. Tertullian [The Chaplet, 3], "On the Lord's day we deem it wrong to fast. Clement of Alexandria [Miscellanies, 5. The theory that the day of Christ's second coming is meant, is untenable. Matthew Poole's Commentary I was in the Spirit; not only in spiritual employment, suppose meditation and prayer, but in an ecstasy; my soul was as it were separated from my body, and under the more than ordinary influence and communications of the Spirit, as Acts And heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet: John in the isle of Patmos was keeping the Christian sabbath in spiritual services, meditation and prayer, and fell into a trance, wherein he had a more immediate communion with the Holy Spirit, which begun with his hearing a loud voice, as it were, behind him, as loud as the sound of a trumpet.

Not on the Jewish sabbath, which was now abolished, nor was that ever called the Lord's day, and had John meant that, he would have said on the sabbath day; much less the Jewish passover, but the first day of the week is designed; so the Ethiopic version renders it "on the first day"; and is so called just as the ordinance of the supper is called the Lord's supper, being instituted by the Lord, and the Lord's table, 1 Corinthians Some have conjectured that this was not the weekly Lord's day observed by the Christians, but the anniversary of Christ's resurrection; and so the Ethiopians still call Easter "Schambatah Crostos", the sabbath of Christ: Now, though John was driven from the house and worship of God, and could not join with the saints in the public worship of that day; yet he was employed in spiritual contemplations and exercises, and was under a more than ordinary influence of the Spirit of God; and his spirit or soul was wholly intent upon, and taken up with divine and spiritual things, with visions and representations that were made unto his mind, which he perceived in his spirit, and not with the organs of his body; he was in an ecstasy of spirit, and knew not scarcely whether he was in the body or out of it: It is only the unexpected, surprising utterance of the divine voice that is here stated.

The mighty, loud[] voice is like the sound of a trumpet. It is therefore, as in Revelation 4: Expositor's Greek Testament Revelation 1: Ecstasy or spiritual rapture, the supreme characteristic of prophets in Did. Throughout the Apocalypse Revelation John first sees, then writes; the two are not simultaneous. It is possible, however, that the prophet was engaged in prayer when the trance or vision overtook him like Peter, Acts Jul 05, Michelle Moyo rated it it was amazing.

May 03, Shannon Miller rated it really liked it. A little repetitive, but will use a good study guide. Jan 22, Roxanne Troup rated it it was amazing. A foundational truth you may not know that will revolutionize the way your Christian walk.

Spirit, Soul & Body

Jan 12, frank. Great book Great revelation enjoyed reading. Would greatly recommend to read. Sep 01, Steven Ramos rated it it was amazing. This book is a huge blessing to understand who you are in spirit is amazing! I like the explanation of the spirit, soul and body. That part deserves five stars. I don't understand the author's statement that he has lived a holier life than most people. That sounds like the pharisee thanking God that he is not like the tax collector. Does the author mean that he intimately knows three billion people?

If not then it is a statement of invalid authority as well. I have to disagree with the author's contentions that drinking coffee and drinking alcohol are sins. I see nothing w I like the explanation of the spirit, soul and body. I see nothing wrong with coffee. People drink it to wake up. What's wrong with that? Drinking alcohol is not a sin. Alcohol helps people to relax and unwind. Alcohol can be overused, and so can food. That does not mean eating food is a sin either. Neither one is a sin when consumed in moderation.

Does the author think Jesus committed a sin when he changed water into wine? I also don't understand the stuff about speaking in tongues.

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I have been baptized and I can't speak in tongues. View all 4 comments. May 21, Josh Giddings rated it it was amazing. This book covers a topic I think every born-again Christian needs to be familiar with and provides a lot of scripture to back up the point. The book explains who you are and how you function as a born-again believer, something so many don't have any clue about. I believe this book topic in general is an essential piece to a victorious and purposeful Christian walk.

Plus, it calls out some bad theology.

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Jan 05, Bukunmi Ajani rated it it was amazing. If you constantly ask yourself 'so what changed after I got born again? Christians should know that being born again means your spirit has been perfected in Christ, technically, you are of one spirit and mind with Christ The Christian life afterwards entails renewing your mind to belief that fact which would in turn manifest through your physical self your body Nov 09, Kay-em rated it it was amazing Shelves: This is one of AW's best books.

It clearly explains how we can be a new creation of God and yet still struggle with sin, in a way that is insightful and biblical. It also highlights how this "double-mindedness" can be overcome, using relevant scripture. May 20, Carol rated it it was amazing Shelves: There is so much in this small book that I cannot sum it up in a few lines. The truths in this book are the foundation for releasing your true identity and walking in the spirit.

Nov 01, Larry Fox rated it it was ok Shelves: Some of what the author states is good, but I strongly disagree with some of his key points. May 07, James Lucas rated it it was amazing. Having read this for the 7th time, revelation still continues to flow. I'd strongly recommend this to anyone who needs and wants to enhance their walk with God.