That brings us next to John’s vision beginning with verse 9.

[verse 9] “I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the Word of God and for the Testimony of Jesus Christ.”

There are several things to notice here. The writer, John, identifies himself once again. In the very first lessons we had on Revelation, we talked about the fact that there is some controversy about which “John” this was. I think most agree that it is “John, the apostle” who wrote this Revelation. Here, he identifies himself once more and he reminds his readers that he was suffering along with them. He describes himself as a “brother.” He is, of course, writing these letters to the seven churches—he’s writing these to fellow Christians; therefore, they are “brethren.” He is a brother in Christ. He also says that he is a partaker “in the tribulation” and this, no doubt, makes reference to the persecution that Rome had brought on the church at this time.

You recall that in our Introduction lessons, we were reminded of the great persecution that the church was under at this time, brought upon them initially by the Jews, but now, here in the latter part of the 1^st Century, by the Romans. John himself, you see, was suffering in that same way, because he had been banished to the Island of Patmos by the Roman government as punishment for his preaching. Now, he would have been enduring not only this banishment—this exile—but also, very austere conditions. His life on the island would not be one of “ease.” There is one historian who describes how those who were banished to these kinds of islands in those days were treated. He said, “It was, in its worst form, a terrible fate, like the death penalty. It was preceded by scourging, and it was marked by perpetual fetters,” (that is, being tied up—being bound), “scanty clothing, insufficient food, sleep on the bare ground in a dark prison, and work under the lash of military overseers.” They say that this Island of Patmos was well known for its marble quarries, and the marble was quarried by those prisoners of the Roman Empire whose punishment was banishment. So, we imagine that John was there and had been banished there because of his preaching of the Word of God. He was suffering mightily right along with his brethren to whom he writes these letters.

Verses 10 and 11:

[verse 10] “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,

[verse 11] saying, ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,’ and, ‘What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos [also, Pergamum], to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.’”

In verse 10, there is a reference to the “Lord’s Day,” referring to the first day of the week as the day that the Lord was resurrected from the dead. The word “Lord’s” here in verse 10 appears only twice in the New Testament. The other place is in 1 Corinthians, chapter 11, verse 20, where Paul is talking about and describing the Lord’s Supper. [beginning in verse 19: “For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it. Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper.”] He is presenting to the church of Christ in Corinth what the Lord had informed him about concerning the Lord’s Supper. Paul uses that term—“Lord’s Supper.” That’s one of two places where that word, “Lord’s,” is translated that way. Obviously, that is a reference to Jesus and the supper that He instituted the night of His betrayal. It [the Lord’s supper] was also what was practiced by the church in Jerusalem that we read about in Acts, chapter 2. Also, we see in Acts 20, verse 7, that Christians in Troas came together to break bread on the first day of the week [“Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his Message until midnight.”].

So, this day—the “Lord’s Day”—“Sunday”—the “first day of the week”—is a special day. It is the day that belongs to the Lord. It is the day that He rose from the dead. It is the day when saints—His disciples—His followers—gather together to worship Him and praise Him, and to partake of the Lord’s Supper. We also know from church historians that this was, in fact, the practice of the early church, through the 1^st Century, into the 2^nd Century, and even into the 3^rd Century—to meet on the first day of the week, coming together to observe the Lord’s Supper and to worship. “The Lord’s Day” was the day that John was presented this Revelation while he was “in the spirit,” Revelation 1, verse 10, a Revelation that has come through God, through Christ, through the Holy Spirit to John.

Then in verse 11, the voice once again identified Himself in the same way as He had done before: “saying, ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” and this time, saying, “the First and the Last.” John here is commanded to “write” what he saw and send it in a “book…to the seven churches which are in Asia.”

We might be reminded that these were real churches. They were real churches that existed in the 1^st Century, and they were churches with real problems. Of course, there are cultural differences and approximately 2,000 years of time have passed by, but imagine these seven churches in Ephesus, Philadelphia, and Smyrna, and so on, churches of Christ—our ancient brethren. They were being written to and they were actual congregations—just like ours—and they had problems that were being addressed.