Revelation 1:2
Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
John was entrusted with Revelation because he was the kind of man who did not keep truth locked up inside himself. He bore record of the Word of God, of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all the things he saw. What the Lord showed him, John was willing to receive, hold faithfully, and pass along.
That is worth thinking about.
Sometimes people say, “I do not seem to be growing in the Lord.” Yet when it comes to revelation, information, and inspiration, the Lord does have a very clear prerequisite. The question is not simply, “Do you want to hear something new?” The question is, “Will you receive it in your heart and release it to others?”
That seems to be one of the ways the Lord works.
After visiting with Abraham, the Lord said concerning him that He would tell Abraham what was coming upon Sodom because He knew Abraham would not only receive it, but would share it as well. That is the scene in Genesis 18:17 and 19. Abraham was not chosen merely to be informed. He was chosen because what God placed in him would move through him.
Jesus said much the same thing when He declared, “Take heed how ye hear,” and then added that the one who has will be given more, as Mark 4:24 and 25 tells us. In other words, the issue is not only hearing, but hearing rightly. It is possible to sit in Bible study, open your Bible in the morning, or listen to teaching with the wrong posture entirely.
A person can come saying, “Entertain me.”
Or, “I am curious about prophecy.”
Or even, “Give me something interesting.”
But that kind of heart posture does not position a man or woman to receive very much.
The Lord seems to open His treasures to the one who comes saying, “Speak to me, because I want to embrace what You say. Show me what is true, because I want to walk in it. Teach me, because I want to share it.”
Do not miss that.
Revelation is not given merely to satisfy curiosity. Light is not given just to make us feel informed. The Lord does not pour truth into our lives so we can sit on it like misers guarding gold. He gives truth to shape us, steady us, and then send us out carrying it to someone else.
That means there is a very practical principle here for every one of us. If I open the Word just wanting stimulation, I may walk away untouched. But if I open the Word ready to receive, obey, and share, I place myself in the current of continued revelation. The Lord keeps pouring into open hearts and open hands.
That is the beautiful thing about John. He was not merely a spectator. He was a witness. He did not just see things. He bore record of them. And because he bore record faithfully, the Lord entrusted him with more.
Saints, that is still the way it works.