The Book That Promises a Blessing!

The Book That Promises a Blessing!

A study of the book of Revelations

by Pastor Frank Rice

Revelations 1:1-3

Many of us have visited historical attractions like the Cloister, Gettysburg, Williamsburg, and even Hershey. Visitors are frequently asked to “endure before the tour,” an overview so we more fully understand how everything fits together and see the big picture. Though we may be annoyed by this “waste of time,” most are able to appreciate the introduction at the outset. Here we go…

The book of the Revelation is a fascinating tour with many enigmatic symbols and perspectives. To understand and benefit from it, a pre-understanding is essential! Not only that, a blessing is guaranteed!

 

v      Some significant quotes will help provide perspective on the book.

1.      “Early and widespread testimony attributes the book to the apostle John, and no convincing argument has been advanced against this view.” (Johnson) [NFL; “there’s not enough evidence to overturn the call.”]

2.      “The preponderance of the evidence favors the date for the composition of the Apocalypse to be AD 95.” (Patterson)

3.       “John used symbols in order to communicate that which cannot be expressed in any other way, not to conceal something that could be said more straightforwardly.” (Boring)

4.      “All symbols point to a reality beyond themselves… While the symbols suggest picture language, they represent real persons and events.” (Patterson)

5.      “While the symbolic and visionary mode of presentation creates ambiguity and frustration for many of us, it actually conduces to evocative description of unseen realities with a poignancy and clarity unattainable by any other method.” (Johnson)

6.      This may prove interesting as we move thru our study; “The various series of judgments parallel one another rather than following successively.” (Keener)

7.      The fact that the book has been misunderstood and abused does not merit “throwing the baby out with the bathwater!” There is a monumental “difference between exegesis and speculation. The latter is not offensive unless such speculation is passed off as exegesis or used to excess.” (Patterson)

8.      “In the face of charlatans, unbridled eschatological enthusiasts, and sensationalists, the careful and humble exposition of eschatological themes and particularly the Apocalypse is needed in every generation.” (Patterson)

 

v      Four basic ways of interpreting the book have been suggested.

1.      Preterism “holds that the bulk of John’s prophecies occur in the first century, soon after his writing of them. Though the prophecies were in the future when John wrote and when his original audience read them, they are now in our past.” (Gentry)

2.      Historicism treats the book as a panorama of church history from John’s time to the Second Advent, predicting the major movements of Christian history. Forced application disqualifies it.

3.      Idealists understand the various symbols as allegories of spiritual truths depicting the cosmic struggle of good and evil forecasting the eventual triumph of God’s purpose.

4.      Futurists hold chaps. 4-22 were future to John as well as us. This view “has the virtue of immediacy in confronting the modern reader with precisely the same promises, the same threats and the same choices that the book’s original readers faced.” (Michaels)

 

v      One general outline will help unpack the book’s meaning (1:19).

1.      John writes concerning things which he’s seen - the past.

2.      He writes concerning things which are – the present.

3.      He writes about things which are to take place – the future.

 

v      It is important to recognize the origin of this book (v. 1a)!

1.      The message originated with God, was given to Jesus Christ, who then communicated it to angelic beings.

2.      These angels delivered it to the apostle John through the medium of signs and symbols.

3.      The book’s intended audience is called “servants.” God’s people throughout the book are designated His servants.

4.      “John is clearly communicating that this is not merely his set of visions, but the visions come directly from God and Christ, mediated by angels.” (Osborne)

 

v      It is important to recognize the objective of the book (vv. 1b-2).

1.      The objective of the book is to show God’s people the things which must “soon” take place.

2.      John is determined to bear witness (provide a testimony) to everything he saw, what God has said, and who Jesus Christ is and what He has done.

 

v      Those who take the book seriously are in store for a blessing!

1.      The one who publicly reads the words of this prophecy can expect a blessing.

2.      The same is true for those who listen attentively to the words. “Hear” and “heed” were practically synonymous to the initial listeners!

3.      Those who take the words seriously, by practical application, can expect a blessing. (You don’t get to define the “blessing.”)

 

v      Those who wait expectantly are wise! Unfortunately, the terms “near, soon, and shortly” are also not subject to our modern definitions!

1.      “The language of imminence intends to draw the reader into a sense of expectation and responsibility, a sense meant to characterize every age of the church.” (Osborne)

2.      “Throughout, the focus is not just on eschatology but on ethics… in light of the fact that ‘the time is near,’ we are called to live decisively and completely for God.” (Osborne)

 

v      Regardless of eschatology every orthodox believer is able to solemnly affirm the following [From Keener]

1.      We do solemnly affirm that God is awesomely majestic, as well as sovereign in our troubles

2.      that Jesus’ sacrifice as the Lamb ultimately brings complete deliverance for those who trust Him

3.      that God’s judgments on the world are often to serve notice on the world that God will avenge His people

4.      that regardless of how things appear in the short run, “sin does not go unpunished,” and God will judge

5.      that God can accomplish His purposes through a small and persecuted remnant; He is not dependent on what the world values as power

6.      that worship leads us from grief over our sufferings to God’s eternal purposes seen from a heavenly perspective

7.      that proclaiming Christ invites persecution; the normal state of committed believers in this age

8.      that Christ is worth dying for

9.      that a radical contrast exists between God’s kingdom (exemplified in the bride, the new Jerusalem) and the world’s values (exemplified in the prostitute, Babylon)

10.  that the hope God has prepared for us far exceeds our present sufferings

11.   that God’s plan and church ultimately include representatives of all peoples.