Intro to Revelation
Revelation Series • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 43:52
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· 21 viewsBegin series on Revelation w/ overview the book.
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Intro to Revelation - 1:1-3
1. The Presentation of the Book – 1:1
2. The Purpose of the Book – 1:1
3. The Penman of the Book – 1:1-2
4. The Promise of the Book – 1:3
Introduction – In my view of the world, one of the greatest modern technology inventions is the DVR – digital video recorder. This thing connects to my TV and allows me to pause a show I’m watching to go get a snack or use the restroom. It allows me to record a show I want to watch with the push of one button which allows me to watch a show on my timetable not someone else’s. I have found it to be a huge blessing because it saves me time because I can fast-forward through all the dumb commercials. This means I can watch a 30 minute show in about 20 minutes; an hour show in about 45. Its awesome!
One way I really love this DVR thing is when there is a football game I want to watch. Many times I’ll have a church meeting on Sunday evenings so I record the Ravens game and then after I get home, I’ll sometimes sit and watch the game to veg and unwind from the long day. For big games, I look forward to sitting down and seeing the whole game from start to finish late at night when the house is quiet. Uninterrupted football – I love it. On a day I’m planning to stay up and watch the game after the fact, I’ll do all I can to avoid seeing or hearing the scores. Sometimes I succeed – many times that plan fails miserably (like with Dad calling me & spilling the beans with the Cowboys/Eagles outcome…). If my team is on the losing end, I might save myself the sorrow and not watch it. But what a thrill when I learned the score by accident and my team won. Knowing the outcome of the game allows me to enjoy and watch with confidence – even when my team is in a tight spot, they fumble or have their backs to the wall, since I know the score, beforehand, I can watch with calm assurance that we win in the end.
Background – Well today we will begin a great adventure together over the next several weeks as we study the Book of Revelation together on Sunday mornings. The Book of Revelation is kind of like God’s DVR. It is a “fast-forward” view of what happens at the end of the story of the human race. It is “The Rest of the Story” as old Paul Harvey used to say. It is the grand climax of God’s eternal plan for the universe, the final chapter before God’s restored kingdom is ushered in for eternity. Revelation is the “Happily Ever After” ending all Christians have to look forward to but this is no fairy tale.
It is God’s revelation of what the future holds for the human race, it identifies the final score, who the winners and losers are in the cosmic battle between good versus evil. It is also a warning for us to take seriously to ensure we are on the winning team, that of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.
A Challenge before we begin:
Let me encourage you to enter this study with an open heart and mind and put aside all the preconceived ideas or thoughts you have about this book. Let us approach the Book of Revelation without some kind of “system” to categorize ourselves – IE I’m pre-tribulation rapture guy, I’m a mid-tribulation, post tribulation – pre-millennial, post millemillennial or amillennial kind of system. I want us to let the text speak to us and not have it clouded by some system of belief we use as a filter to the Scriptures. Let us ask the Helper, the blessed Holy Spirit to reveal the truth of His word to us and may our beliefs and understandings flow from the word of God directly. (Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to illuminate the meaning to us).
I also want to say in advance I’ll paint with broad strokes and try to keep the big picture in mind over the next 15 weeks or so and I’ll not solve every issue or question. (For further study on your own, best resource I have is Dr. Ed Hindson’s book “The Book of Revelation, unlocking the future”.)
Read Text - vs. 1-3
Notice first of all:
I. The Presentation of the Book – 1:1
Explanation – The first phrase: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ” is the correct title of the book. It is not the revelation of John – he’s not making this stuff up. It is God’s divine, supernatural revelation of God’s Son, Jesus Christ in His glory and splendor as the 2nd Person of the Trinity in His glorified, resurrected and eternal position as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The term “Revelation” is very important: Contrary to what people think, God’s intention for Revelation is that God’s people would understand the meaning of the book. The very title means to “reveal”, not “conceal.” Greek word is Apokalupsis means an unveiling or uncovering in order to reveal. Because of the judgments of God are unveiled and revealed, it has become known as the Apocalypse, transliterating the Greek word apokalupsis into our English word Apocalypse.
The dictionary defines “revelation” this way: (1) a surprising disclosure. the revealing of something previously unknown. a surprising or remarkable thing. (2) a divine or supernatural disclosure to humans.
While it is true there is a lot of symbolism and visions of things the Apostle John saw, many of these symbolic things are symbols of things in Old Testament passages. There are 404 verses in the Book of Revelation and 278 of them are drawn from an Old Testament passage. A key to helping you interpret and understand the book is to remember four simple rules:
1. Revelation is not a dark book. It reveals the future to us.
2. It is not necessary to identify every bit of symbolism in order to understand the overall meaning. I don’t have to be able to identify every tree in the forest and know all about them to appreciate the beauty of the forest as a whole.
3. Observe the rule of literal interpretation and do not spiritualize the meaning of the book of Revelation, or view it was some wild allegorical tale. Interpret the book literally except where the context or grammar indicates the reference is symbolic or a sign of something else. Typically in those symbolic instances, John asks what this means and God interprets the meaning for him.
4. Remember most of the book is prophetic in nature which means most of the events have not taken place yet and it deals with the final coming of Christ.
As Revelation reveals the future to us, it is a divine revelation of God’s plan to restore what was ruined by sin in the beginning. Genesis is the book of beginnings, Revelation is the book of endings. These books have been placed by God as glorious bookends of God’s story, Genesis introduces us to God and informs us of how we got here as humans. It reveals our sinful choices and the rest of the Bible is the story of God’s plan to redeem us back from the clutches of sin and Satan. Revelation reveals how it all ends; it is a book of consummation. Consider:
Gen. – The commencement of heaven & earth (1:1);
Rev. – the consummation of heaven & earth (21:1).
Gen. – The entrance of sin & the curse (3:1-19);
Rev. – the end of sin & the curse (21:27, 22:3).
Gen. – The dawn of Satan & his activities (3:1-7);
Rev. – the doom of Satan & his activities (20:10).
Gen. – The tree of life is relinquished (2:9, 3:24);
Rev. – the tree of life is regained (22:2).
Gen. – Death makes its entrance (2:17, 5:5);
Rev. – death makes its exit (21:4).
Gen. – Sorrow begins (3:16);
Rev. – sorrow is banished (21:4)
This is the presentation of the Book. Notice also:
II. The Purpose of the Book – 1:1
Explanation – the next phrase in vs. 1 is “which God gave Him (Jesus) to show His (Jesus) servants – things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John.” This reveals the purpose of the Revelation of Jesus Christ: “to show His servants things which must shortly take place.”
Notice the chain of command if you will in how this purpose is revealed: God gave it Jesus, Jesus gave it to His angel, and the angel gave it to John. “Servants” – is an important term – literally bondservants.
A bond servant was one who had willingly surrendered their freedom forever to serve their master. They were a willing slave for life. They would have their ear pierced through at the town gate in front of all the city leaders as witnesses. Those who are fully surrendered to the Lordship of Christ as their master should have little difficulty understanding the message and purpose of the book of Revelation. It is a message from the Master to the servants of what is going to happen.
8 times in Revelation, the admonition “He that has an ear to hear, let him hear…” (2:7, 11, 17, 29, 3:6, 13, 22 & 13:9). A true servant, a willing servant is one who listens for His master’s voice and is ready to respond in obedience. The relationship between a Master and His bondservant is a special relationship because it is for life. In this case, the Master/bondservant relationship between Jesus and His servants is for eternity and the Master has graciously revealed to His bondservants His plans for us.
According to Jer.29:11, His plans are good plans, plans not to harm us, plans to give us a future and hope, to bring us to an expected end. True bondservants are not scared of their Master’s plans – but if you’re not a bondservant of Christ, you should be afraid!
The phrase: “things which must shortly take place” is very important. The word “shortly” can be understood as “quickly” or “swiftly”. The Greek word is “en tachei” which means swiftness. Scientists have drawn from this word to give the name “tachometer” which is an instrument to measure velocity.
Elsewhere in the NT the word is translated “speedily” (Luke 18:8) – the idea here in Revelation is not so much happening soon, though saints through the ages live with an expectation Christ will return soon; rather when this does happen, it will happen swiftly, rapidly, quickly. Some have mocked because this hasn’t happened (2nd Peter 3:4) – yet the Apostle Peter said one day with the Lord is as a thousand years and God is patiently waiting because He’s not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance (2nd Peter 3:8-9). The disciples were looking for the Lord’s return during their lifetimes and we should be also and ready for it because Jesus said He would come suddenly like a thief does unexpectedly. Notice also:
III. The Penman of the Book – 1:1-2, 9, 19
Explanation – Identifying the human author of the book is important and helps us understand “the things you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which take place after this” (1:19). Much confusion over the meaning of book has resulted from people identifying the human author inspired by God to record this prophecy as someone other than the correct penman, the Apostle John, the son of Zebedee, the brother of James, one of the original 12 disciples of Jesus Christ, an eyewitness of the resurrection. The Apostle John was a fisherman, a beloved disciple of Jesus Christ and part of the Lord’s inner circle that Jesus invested more time with: Peter, James & John. He was there on the Mount of Transfiguration when Jesus’ glory was revealed briefly by the Heavenly Father (Matt.17:1-13). At that time Jesus told them to tell no one the vision they had seen of his glory until after He was risen from the dead (Matt.17:9). Jesus trusted Peter, James and John with that information at that time and as the last surviving disciple, exiled on the Isle of Patmos, in approximately 95 AD under the emperor Domitian; Jesus reveals to John His beloved disciple what is about to happen.
Domitian was the first Roman Emperor who tried to compel Christians to worship Caesar as god. The early church fathers, Irenaeus (A.D.180), and Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 200) affirmed the Apostle John the author. There exiled on the dreary island of Patmos, 25 miles off the coast of Asia Minor in the Aegean sea, God turned bondage into blessing and gave the old apostle John one last assignment before he met Jesus face to face for the final time: To record this Revelation of Jesus Christ for all His bondservants! Finally:
IV. The Promise of the Book – 1:3
Explanation – Revelation uniquely opens and closes with a blessing in vs.1:3 and 22:7. 22:7 says “Behold I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of this prophecy of this book.” “Blessed” here is the same word Jesus used in the beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount – IE Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness etc. What must one do to receive this blessing from Jesus Himself? Three things listed for us:
1) He who reads – if we neglect the reading of how the game ends, we deprive ourselves of the blessing! Took me just 52 minutes this week as I was studying and I’m not a fast reader!
2) Those who hear – I mentioned earlier the admonition given 8 times throughout “He who has ears to ear, let him hear!” Hearing the news of how all this ends is important as it should motivate us to act on what we read and what we hear. You can hear the warnings of an impending hurricane and act on what you hear and be blessed but ignore that news to your own detriment. Yesterday while driving to the Valley for my pastor’s funeral, I listened to the book of Revelation on the Gideon Bible app. They read it in dramatic fashion! Awesome. You have a long commute or traveling? Listen up!
3) Those who keep those things that are written in it… The term keeping them would be synonymous with obeying them:
Someone wisely observed on this point: “This keeping is observing them in such a way that our practical conduct shall be governed by them.”
The phrase: “for the time is near” – the word “time” is chronos which denotes a space of time, a season. It can be either a short time as in Luke 4:5 or a long time in Luke 8:27. Whether it is a short time or a long time does not matter, the point of the blessing of the book is to be ready for the coming of the 2nd coming of the Lord!
Applications –
1. Jesus wins, Satan loses which means we win!
If you know the Lord Jesus personally, this book of prophesy is designed to encourage you by letting you know the final score: Jesus wins Satan loses! Watch the future unfold with confidence knowing all this stuff must take place before Satan is finally banished forever in Hell.
2. Revelation is designed to encourage believers & warn unbelievers!
If this book discourages you, my guess is you’re one of two things:
A) You know you’re lost and an enemy of God and will go straight to hell for your final judgment. But God doesn’t want anyone to go to hell! That’s why He sent Jesus Christ to earth and made provision for you to be forgiven of your sin! Share the ABC’s
B) You are a backslidden believer who’s wandered far from God. The solution is simple: Repent & turn from your wicked ways!
3. Jesus is coming soon!
He’s literally saying to you “Ready or not here I come!!! Be ready! Live with purpose faithfully b/c it could be today! There’s a 2nd version of the ABC’s I’ve been thinking about as we live in the last days:
A - Abide in Christ - Prayer is your vital lifeline: without Jesus we can do nothing!
B - Biblical thinking & living through faithful study of the Word of God. We need our minds renewed constantly and sanctified by the washing of the Word. We need our brains and hearts flushed from the stinkin’ thinkin’ the world bombards us with.
C - Care for one another. This includes people inside and out side the church! Meeting people at the point of their need. The biggest need they have is to be saved! How will they know if we aren’t witnessing to them?
These three things we should be about till Jesus comes.
Close – The late great Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, W.A. Criswell preached from this text on January 8th, 1961. I am grateful for the modern technology which allowed me to both read and listen to him proclaim this about the Revelation of Jesus Christ:
For the first appearing of our Lord was in shame, and the flesh of His humanity veiled His deity and His glory. He first came born of a peasant girl, cradled in a manger, and His companions were the sheep and the ox and the ass. And He grew up in poverty and in want; He knew what it was to hunger, what it was to thirst; and the end of His life was in misery and in shame.
They buffeted Him, they plucked out His beard, He wiped the spittle from His face, and they finally raised Him beneath the sky, where He died crucified as a felon. For you see, the last time that the world looked upon the Son of God was when He was hanged in misery and in anguish and in shame!
It was a part of the loving grace of our heavenly Father, that He might die for our sins, that we might be healed by His stripes, but, but, shall that be the last time that this world in unbelief and blasphemy shall see the Son of God, as He hangs on a cross, dying in blood and in misery and in anguish? God says, “No!”
There shall come a time when the second of the Trinity, the Son of heaven, shall be presented in His true character, in His majesty and in His glory. There shall come a time when He shall be revealed as the rightful heir to the title deed of the world, and He shall hold that deed of the universe in His righteous and nail-pierced hands.
That is the unfolding, the revelation, the uncovering of Jesus Christ in majesty and in glory. “And this is the reward that God hath given unto Him because He humbled Himself, and became a servant, and was obedient unto death. Wherefore God hath also highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess, that He is Christ and Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” [Philippians 2:8-11]
This is the reward that God hath given to His Son; and I am just following the text, “The apokalupsis of Jesus Christ, which God gave to Him,” because He descended from glory in the form and fashion of a servant, because He humbled Himself before men, because He was crucified and slain for our iniquities. God gave Him an earnest of His glory when He raised Him from the dead and when He received Him back at the glorious ascension from Mount Olivet, but that’s not all; that’s not all.
Beyond the earnest that God gave to Christ when He raised Him from the dead, there is to be a day of glorious and final consummation! And that day of final and glorious consummation is the apokalupsis Iesou Christou, the unveiling, the uncovering of the Son of God in glory, in majesty, in honor, and in power.
This oh child of God, this oh church of God is your future; this is your destiny and your hope for tomorrow! “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near!”