It happened on a Sunday a long time ago. An 85-year-old man named "John" was in an Alcatraz-like prison on an island named "Patmos." But he was not in despair. To the contrary, according to the Bible, he was "in the Spirit" (I'd love to know exactly what that meant) and was worshipping God. Then, in the midst of his private worship, John heard a voice behind him as clear and powerful as the first trumpet in the LA Philharmonic. And, as we considered last week in our services, this was the voice of the resurrected, majestic, all-powerful Jesus.
When John turned around, the one who was speaking to him, and what he saw was "seven golden lampstands and in the midst of the lampstands was one like a son of man" (Revelation 1:13).
It's clear that we should expect to meet this powerful Jesus among the candlesticks. So, the question this calls forth is, "What is a candlestick? I know I should expect to experience Jesus in one of these candlesticks. What is a candlestick?"
The Book of Revelation is not always easy to understand. It's filled with symbols and language that point back to the Hebrew Scriptures. However, it's very easy to figure out what a candlestick is in Revelation because Rev. 1:20 tells us plainly that the lampstands are the churches. I believe that this indicates that whenever a local church that is committed to Jesus as Lord gathers together, it is a lampstand. And, Jesus is among us doing life with us when we gather. If that's true, all those who long to know and experience God should be involved regularly in a local church.
After last week's church services, Kernola Arnold of LAC stopped me and told me that in 1974, her husband was shot at his business in Mansfield, Ohio. In what would have been a time of utter despair for most people, Kernola was surrounded by the members of her church who worshipped with her, prayed with her, and loved on her. Kernola told me that she experienced the reality and sufficiency of Jesus in the life of her local "candlestick", i.e., her local church. This enabled her to be a light herself, showing the hope of Christ to those who watched her.
Lake Avenue Church is one of God's candlesticks. My prayer is that you will experience the love and power of Jesus among us today. If you do, you will be able to go out and shine into a world that sometimes seems to be rather dark.
To His Glory,
Dr. Greg Waybright
Senior Pastor
