In the vision of Christ given to the Apostle John at the beginning of the book of Revelation, the Lord had “in His right hand seven stars” (Rev. 1:16). The Lord Himself explained to John what these stars were:

“The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are the messengers of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.”
— Revelation 1:20

In 2:1 the Lord adds that He “holds” these stars, His “messengers,” in His right hand, and then in chapters 2 and 3 He goes on to give each of these messengers, respectively, a specific word for each of the seven churches. This is all we know about these stars.

And yet, we do see here the basic principle for being the Lord’s messenger to the church: we must be one who is held in the His hand.

That is, we must have a basic realization: our life is not our own, but rather, it belongs to the Lord for Him to direct as He sees fit. And this must not be merely an inward feeling; it must be worked out in our practical experience and decisions. If we have plans and goals, we hold onto them lightly, allowing the Lord to bend, shape, and mold our life, and our very being, as He sees fit. In a very real sense, we do not even have a future of our own, for the Lord Himself as everything to us is our future.

How the Lord needs such ones today! In His first message, the one to the church in Ephesus, the Lord describes Himself in this way:

“These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands.”
— Revelation 2:1

Here the Lord connects His holding of the seven stars to His walking among the lampstands, indicating that His walking among the churches and dealing with them depends, to a large extent, on His having these “stars.”

We should all aspire to be such “stars,” telling the Lord:

“Lord, I want to be a shining star to give You a way to work among the churches! So, my life just belongs to You, for You to work out in me and through me all that You desire! ”

Each time the Bible speaks of the Lord holding the stars, we are told they are in His “right hand”; in the Bible, this is the place of honor (cf. Heb. 1:3). What an honor and privilege it is for the Lord to call us to be His messengers, His “stars”! May some today rise up to be those whose lives, and who themselves, are truly “in His right hand,” so that He may commit to them His message for the church in our time.

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— 7 June 2022 —