Why Does Jesus Scare Us? Revelation 2-3

Would the Lord Jesus actually remove the lampstand of one of His churches? Or fight against them as if they were an enemy? Or blot someone's name from the book of Life? How should the warnings of Jesus be understood by those of us who have put our confidence in His grace and mercy?

First, the warnings of Jesus get to the heart of what we mean when we say that Jesus is "Lord." When many of us think of Jesus, the picture that rightly comes to mind is of a loving Savior who died for our sins. Yet Jesus is also the creator and ruler over all creation (Col. 1:15-19) and the One before whom every knee will bow (Phil. 2:1-16).

I'm comfortable with Jesus Christ being my Savior, forgiving me of my sin and setting me free from the clutches of Satan and death. This is the sweet part of saving grace. But I recoil from the revelation of His awesome power and sovereign rule. Here are some of the reasons why:

• Because if Jesus is Lord, I am accountable for my selfish actions.
• Because if Jesus is Lord, I will have to give up my claims on "my" life and my self-centered agendas.
• Because if Jesus is Lord, I can't simply do whatever I want.

In short, Jesus' lordship demands my loyalty, my submission, and my obedience. It means that I must choose between my allegiance to Jesus and all other competitors  for first place in my life. And it confronts me with the fact that my response to Jesus' authority has serious eternal consequences.

Second, the warnings of Jesus demonstrate His righteous integrity. The alternative to Jesus exercising his role as Judge would be for Him to do nothing in the face of evil. We expect countries to execute traitors whose disloyalties work to bring a nation to ruin. We expect a boss to fire an employee whose misconduct robs productivity or resources. And we expect leaders to enforce the law and punish evildoers. How then do we expect our Lord Jesus to respond when His self-proclaimed followers make the devil or world system their ultimate choice, or when they unrepentantly undermine the work of salvation and lead others to destruction?

A failure to judge what is evil in these cases would really be an abdication of what is good. The warnings of Jesus reflect His engagement with evil, and His fierce commitment to what is right.

Finally, the warnings of Jesus are not meant to paralyze us with fear or condemnation, but rather to spur us on to faithfulness. Jesus speaks these words to keep us on the pathway of truth, to keep us accountable to our calling, and to make our lives instruments of His power. While the warnings of Revelation 2-3 are to be taken seriously, they are also to be understood as coming from the heart of Jesus-the One who gave His own life for our good.

A close examination of the warnings of Rev. 2-3 reveals how the warnings of Jesus-when properly received-work to spur us on to faith and perseverance:

1. I will . . . remove your lampstand from its place (Rev. 2:5). When the light in the lighthouse goes out, vessels below in the treacherous seas are in dire peril. Likewise, churches that no longer speak and act in the power of the Spirit of God may promise rescue but have no power to save. In this case, goodness and kindness demand that the light be re-lit or removed. This realization recommissions true believers to shine with the power of God.

2. I will fight against you (Rev. 2:16). If you dress like the enemy, develop the tastes of the enemy, share the opinions of the enemy, and act like the enemy-watch out, you may become the enemy! Habakkuk 1:5-6 speaks of God fighting against Israel because of her adulterous and idolatrous ways. But once Habakkuk understood God's ways, it spurred him to commit himself to the hope found in the Lord (Hab. 3:18-19). True believers will have the same response.

3. He who overcomes...I will never blot out his name from the book of life (Rev. 3:5). This warning is the most unsettling because it implies that the consequences of failing to overcome would be removal from eternal life. And Jesus had just finished saying that many who claimed to be alive were actually "dead," and that the rest were "about to die"! However, the point of Jesus' warning is not condemnation, but rather to awaken true believers so that they would not die. Thus the warning would have a saving effect on all who would take it seriously and "wake up."

When we read the warnings of our Lord, we are often tempted to think the worst and cower in fear. But the in-tentions of God to us in Jesus are clear: "For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath, but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thess. 5:19). Jesus wants the church to experience the fullness of His salvation, so He warns her, thereby giving her guidance and strength to overcome.


Dr. Richard Fisher has served as a professor and regional director with Moody Bible Institute.

More Warnings

Matthew 13:1-23
1 Corinthians 9:24–10:12
2 Corinthians 13:5
Colossians 1:21-23
Hebrews 2:1-4; 3:7–14; 6:1-12; 10:26-31; 12:13-29
2 Peter 1:3-11
2 Peter 2
Revelation 21:5-8
Revelation 22:18-19

The Bible assures us that we who are heirs of the promise will surely receive what God has promised. Yet the Bible sternly admonishes us lest we fall short of the grace of God (Heb. 12:15). What is the function of biblical admonitions and warnings? Should believers take seriously biblical cautions against apostasy and eternal destruction? If we should, how do we do this and, at the same time, retain assurance of salvation?

We believe that God’s promises of assured salvation have their proper function to ground our faith in God and to assure us that God faithfully keeps his promises to his children. We also believe that God’s admonitions and warnings have their distinctive function to evoke faith that perseveres in holy devotion to God’s heavenly call on us in Christ Jesus. Thus, God’s warnings do not conflict with God’s promises. His warnings serve his promises, for his warnings elicit belief and confidence in God’s promises.

Thomas Schreiner and Ardel Caneday, The Race Set Before Us, pp. 145, 143