Dr. J. Vernon McGee :: Because of Bethlehem

Because of Bethlehem

Bethlehem brought Jesus down to us, but it has not brought us up to Him. He must come again in order to get us. The following words are His Christmas message to us today:

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:3)

Christ became a baby at Bethlehem so that we will lose our babyhood when He comes again. He became like us at Bethlehem. We will become like Him when He comes again:

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)

And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. (Romans 13:11)

The Book of Revelation opens with this amazing statement —

“The Revelation of Jesus Christ…”

The word which is translated “Revelation” is apokalupsis. This is one of the three words which are commonly used in the New Testament for the second coming of Christ. The three words are:

(1) Epiphaneia. This means “shining in.” This word is used interchangeably for His first and second comings. In fact, His appearances in the Old Testament are an epiphaneia. His coming at Bethlehem is an epiphaneia, and His appearing for His church is called an epiphaneia. Paul used it for both the first coming and the second coming of Christ when he wrote Titus:

For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. (Titus 2:11-13)

The first time that the word “appear” occurs, it refers to His coming at Bethlehem, and the second time it occurs, the Rapture is in view.

(2) Parousia. This word simply means “present.” It would be the answer that a soldier would give to roll call. This word could be used for either phase of the second coming of Christ. It is used when the apostles asked the Lord Jesus for a sign of His coming (Matthew 24:3). It speaks of both phases of His coming: first for His church, and second to the earth to establish His Kingdom. Paul used it for the former in 1 Corinthians 15:23, “…they that are Christ’s at his coming.”

(3) Apokalupsis. This means “unveiling.” This is the word that occurs in Revelation, and it is where the Book gets its name. This word is reserved for the full manifestation of Christ — at His coming in power and in glory to the earth.

There have been those who have maintained that this word could refer either to the Rapture or to His coming in glory. I spent some time in going over each one of these passages carefully and I am personally convinced that each time this word occurs it looks beyond the Rapture to the full manifestation of the Lord Jesus Christ.

In fact, one of the reasons that the Book of Revelation has been so misunderstood is because men have thought it was the unveiling of events that are in the future. It is not the unveiling of events but the unveiling of a Person who has not yet been seen in all of His glory and beauty. Today He is like a statue that has the veil put over it, awaiting the day when the veil shall be removed and He shall be seen in all of His glory.

There is no unveiling of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Old Testament, but He is there in shadow and in symbol. Actually, there was no unveiling at Bethlehem.

It is not until you come to the Book of Revelation that you see the Lord Jesus Christ unveiled.

Again, may we call attention to something that needs to be corrected? The Book of Revelation is not a symbolic book. John actually saw the events take place, for they concern the full-orbed manifestation of the Lord Jesus Christ in all His pristine and regal glory.

The Book of Revelation sets before us a glorious Person, with the veil removed from Him, and with the veil removed from our eyes so that we may look upon Him and see with John —

…We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

In the Book of Revelation, the important things are:

(1) The Judge — not judgments.

(2) The Lamb — not the dragon.

(3) The Rider on the white horse who has four names — not the four horsemen.

(4) The Lion of the Tribe of Judah who is the center — not the beast out of the sea.

(5) The bride of the Lamb is the one that we need to identify — not the harlot on the beast.

Christ is not a savior in His revelation; He is Sovereign. He is not a helpless babe; He is the omnipotent Man.

There are not merely a few shepherds present at His revelation, but a great multitude which no man could number out of every tribe and tongue and nation bowing to Him.

He is not a poor carpenter with no place to lay His head, but He is the King on the throne with the seven-sealed book of the title deeds of the earth in His hands.

He is not a newborn baby with chubby hands, but He is the Man with nail prints in His hands.

He is not in swaddling clothes, but He is in robes of glory.

Christ is the Great High Priest.

He is the Word of God.

He is Faithful and True.

He is the King of Kings and the Lords of Lords.

It is not just a star that marks Him now, but He is the One before whose presence the heavens will roll up as a scroll. Wise men brought gifts to a baby then, but He will be the Man of glory bringing rewards and gifts for His own. Bethlehem is only a glimpse of Christ. Bethlehem is a bird’s-eye view of His glory. Bethlehem is looking through a glass darkly, but those who are His own look on to the Bright and Morning Star, and their prayers today cry out in a world that has rejected Him — “even so, come, Lord Jesus.”