To Him who loves us...

...and has freed us from our sins by His blood!

I invite you to read this magnificent passage from Revelation 1:5-6, because it sums up almost the whole Gospel in just a few words: the love of Christ, the cleansing through His blood, our new identity, and the glory that belongs to Him.

John does not begin with what we do for God, but with the work of Christ for us: “To Him who loves us” — not only now, but from all eternity! We are in the present continuous tense!

And this verb is precious: it is not simply that “He loved us once in the past,” but that “He still loves us.” His love must not be a distant memory; it is a living and present reality.

As for the love of Jesus, it is not merely a feeling: He does not simply look at us with compassion! His love was manifested through a heroic act: His blood shed for us.

Our sins are not simply forgotten, minimized, or excused: they have been washed away. This means there truly was defilement, guilt, and separation from God — something only the blood of Christ could restore.

This protects us from two errors:

— on one hand, trivializing sin;
— on the other hand, despairing because of sin.

Sin is serious, yes. But the blood of Jesus is sufficient, powerful, and perfect.

As 1 John 1:7 says:
“The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”

What rest for the soul! We are not clean because we feel we have succeeded in our spiritual life, or because we wear a certain label.

We are cleansed because Christ gave His life for us.

 “...he has made us a kingdom...”

We now belong to a kingdom — but not like the kingdoms of this world, marked by ambition, human domination, pride, or power. We are the people of King Jesus.

This means that our true citizenship, our true belonging, and our true hope are no longer rooted in this passing world. We are already under the authority of the eternal King.

This speaks deeply to us: the book of Revelation shows empires rising and falling, powers that impress, forces that seem to dominate... but from the very beginning, John reminds us that believers already belong to the unshakable Kingdom of Christ!

 “...priests to His God and Father”

This is another immense truth: in Christ, we have access to God.

Under the Old Covenant, priests had a particular role: they approached God, served in His presence, interceded, and offered sacrifices.

But now, in Jesus Christ, every believer is called to live near the heart of God, to worship Him, to serve Him, and to offer his or her life as a living sacrifice. Romans 12:1

This does not mean that we become mediators of salvation — Jesus alone is the perfect Mediator — but it does mean that we are no longer far from God.

We have access to the Father, through the Son, in the Spirit. Ephesians 2:18

What dignity! The believer is brought into the presence of God to worship and serve Him.

... “To Him be glory and dominion forever and ever!”

The conclusion is natural: when John contemplates all this, he can only worship — and so can we!

The One who loves us, who has washed us, who has made us a kingdom and priests, deserves all the glory.

The glory does not belong to the saved man, but to the Savior.

We are loved, washed, lifted up, established... but everything comes from Him. Therefore, everything also returns to Him.

The dominion also belongs to Him. This world sometimes appears confused, violent, unstable, and rebellious against God. But Christ reigns forever. He has already conquered through the cross, and His reign will soon be fully revealed.

This is a verse that makes us lift our heads! It reminds us that we are not defined by our past, our failures, our weaknesses, or the way the world sees us.

We are now defined by the work of Christ — forever!

Franz