The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-11-20
THE VISION.

The Revelator was an exile at Patmos, a
prosecutions and dangers of the times. 1t
was the custom of the Christians, probably
from the very day of our Lords Resurrection,
to assemble on that day, which came to be
called the Lords day, for worship and fell
lowship. John was deprived of the fellow
ship of bis brethren; and of the privilege of
ministering in word to his beloved assembly,
but he would still remember the day and en-
ploy it as an opportunity for special spiritual
exercise and communion. A devout soul
may receive profound impressions from the
Eternal Spirit of God when alone and deeply
and sincerely exercised. The known spirit
ual character of the Apostle John indicates
one well qualified for the most profitable and
effective private devotion. He was spiritu-
ally susceptible and of quick perception. He
was easily stirred to the very depths of his
being, when spiritual perception is clearest
and truest. All great souls when profoundly
stirred and in earnest have visions of the I'M
seen real, and may be inspired by ap intelii-
gence higher than their own, by the very
Spirit of God himself. John "was in the
Spirit on the Lords day." when he obtained
a view of his risen, glorifed and everything
Lord and of his kingdom, power and glory,
which he was constrained to write and send
for the comfort and encouraging o. the
prosecuted and distressed churches, to which
he had, no doubt, been faithful minister or
evangelist. The scene which he beheld was
one mainly comprising pictures of the Old
Testament prophets, and which he describes
in the symbolic language of the Hebrew
Scriptures. He hears blast of trumpet,
symbol of the voice or word of COP, and
turns to behold the trumpeter, and SEES
whom he describes by symbols, the glorited
Christ in the midst of the churches, verifying
his own word, ''Lo, am with you always"
even unto death. He describes having seen
symbols of the seven churches (verse 20. See
also Matthew v. 14-16; Philippians ii 15), in
the midst of which was onelike ason of man,
dressed in royal robes, hoary headed and with
flashing eyes, symbols of wisdom and pene-
tration, and it may be, energy. His feet
were like FURNISHED brass, typical of one who
would tread down all opposition, and his voice
was as the sound of many waters, another
Hebrew symbol of the voice of God. By ref
erence it will be seen that this imagery is cop
led entirely from the Old Testament Scrip
lures, and is a representation of the King of
Glory, to be realized in the Coming One. 1t
is evidently picture of JESUS as he is con-
,1s-x L. l., ii L.. ~, kr~
Divine providence in human history. In his
hands appeared seven stars, symbols of the
ministers or spiritual guardians of the
churches, and out of his mouth two edged
sword, the symbol of the word of God (Ephe-
slams vi. II; Hebrews iv. 12). His counte-
nance shone like the MONDAY sun. The Rev
elator represents himself Gas in the vision of
Daniel K. 8-12) as having been oyerpowered
by the view, but that JESUS placed his hand
upon him assuringly and said, Fear not, l
am the First and the Last, and the Living
One, l was dead and behold am alive to the
ages of the ages, and have the keys of death
and Hades." Though he had been put to
death, he was perpetually alive, and had au-
thority over death and the realm or kingdom
of the dead. Living or dying, therefore, he
was able to sustain and glorify his saints, and
to give victory at last to his truth. This was
the message to comfort and sustain the wit
nesses of the truth, in the time of the fiery
trial of their faith! What the Church espe-
cially needed then to sustain their faith and
encourage hope is peTpetudIIy needed by the
Church in the conflict with evil and impurity,
IA vision of JESUS, as King of Souls, present
with his Church in the world and having au-
thority in all worlds to give the victory at
last to every soul over all evil.
Let the churches know that their risen Re-
deemer is mighty; is crowned with glory and
honor and set over the realm of nature and
the empire of the world, ''King of kings and
Lord of lords" Let them have no fears az
to the final triumph of his cause. Let them
shrink from no endurance of pain even to
death for his sake. Let it be settled forever
in their souls that such Saviour is strong to
sustain his friends or to crush his foes; that
his promised rewards are ineffably glorious,
but that his wrath burns to the lowest hell, to
the unutterable dismay of his proudest,
mightiest enemies. Such manifestations of
such a Saviour were adapted with Divine wis
dom to arm them for the conflict through
which they we're soon to pass.-Cot0leS.