He Who has the Seven Spirits of God

And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, ‘These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God
and the seven stars: “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.”
Revelation 3:1

This is a hard one. Although indisputably a name of Christ, I’ve never seen this one in any other listing of the titles of the Lord. That’s probably because it is difficult to explain.

The Apostle John reminds his readers of his vision of the Triune God in chapter one of Revelation. “…Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ…” (1:4-5). Here, the Trinity is portrayed: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The imagery is repeated in chapter four where the throne room of heaven is in focus. The four living creatures chant, “Holy, holy, holy” to “the Lord God Almighty” who is seen as the One who sat on the throne (Father), the Lamb (Christ), and the “seven lamps of fire […] which are the seven spirits of God” (Holy Spirit) (Revelation 4:5). Here again, the threefold nature of God is revealed.

Yes, it is understood that Jesus is the second person in the Trinity, but there is another problem. Does the phrase, “seven spirits of God” mean that the Holy Spirit is a committee formed by several lesser spirits? That is certainly not the case.

The idea that comes across is the fullness of the Spirit. Seven is the number of completeness and gives the idea of everything that is there. Seven days are one full week. When a sailor boasts of having sailed the Seven Seas, he’s claiming to have been everywhere in the one great worldwide ocean.

When Christ is presented as He Who has the Seven Spirits of God, He is linked to the Holy Spirit and His deity is affirmed.

The church of Sardis had a name that was alive but was actually spiritually lifeless. Such churches certainly exist today. They go through the formalism of religion without ever having been born again. They desperately need the Spirit of life to indwell them, but first they need to come to Him Who has the Seven Spirits of God.

 March 20