“And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, ‘See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy’” (Revelation 19:10, NKJV).
Our devotion is prophetic. I know some of us are tempted to think that our devotion is more pathetic than prophetic, but that’s not true! Every heart that moves into Jesus’ proximity moves into the prophetic, because the testimony of Jesus is prophetic. And it’s discovered in worship. “Worship God,” the angel commanded John, as he rebuked John for his ill-directed worship: “I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” (Rev. 19:10b).
For each one of us, the testimony of Jesus begins when the Father reveals Jesus Christ in us. We discover Christ and believe. There begins our knowing, even though we have been known forever. We were foreknown by God before the foundations of the world, chosen to be in Christ before the Father in love, holy and without blame. When we begin our seeing and hearing of Jesus, we can imagine that the Father has a lot to share with us regarding our glorious position in Christ!
Our testimony of Jesus is what we “see and hear” from Jesus. It’s not found in books, although the Bible is a glorious place to see and hear Him. For seeing and hearing Jesus is revelation, where we perceive in sight (seeing the unseen) and hear in hearing (the voice of God) all that Jesus is, has accomplished, and is doing. That’s prophetic!
That’s where we become worshippers of God, as we worship God in what we see of Him and hear of Him. That’s where worship becomes our testimony– in our personal, experienced encounters with Jesus. And once we have experienced Jesus and worshipped these truths back to Him, it has become our testimony of Jesus. It’s prophetic in that it’s living, alive, active and participatory, because the words Jesus speaks are “spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63b).
Therefore, as we rehearse in worship all that we are seeing and hearing and have seen and heard, it brings it all to life and becomes our “confession of hope,” where we approach the throne of grace and continue to grow in our maturity as we agree with Jesus (see Hebrews 10:23). It’s also “The word of our testimony,” where we overcome the accuser of our brethren with the blood of the Lamb and Holy Spirit confidence (see Revelation 12:11).
The revelation of Jesus Christ is our testimony of Jesus. It both declares our future and holds us in the midst of the battle– because it’s Jesus! We are talking about Jesus, worshipping Jesus, and beholding Jesus. He is alive, triumphant, victorious, overcoming, loving, and kind. Jesus is everything!
Who knows where our worship and devotion of Jesus will take us? One thing is for sure: Our devotion will bring us to the feet of Jesus. And from there, it will take us further up and further into Christ Jesus our Lord.
