Revelation for Beginners

SECURITY IN AN INSECURE WORLD–1:8

Do you feel secure? Do you have financial security? Job security? What about your marriage? Health? Your life? Your future? What about in the world? Is it realistic to think all things will continue in the world as they have indefinitely—that somehow we will muddle through? Or is some type of collapse inevitable? What are the prospects for our personal and family survival? Is God losing control? How can I have any realistic sense of security?

9-ll dramatically altered the world’s security consciousness. Since then, many have been more willing to give up personal freedoms and rights in exchange for greater physical security. At the 2008 Olympics in Bejing, security seemed to be job # 1. I was reading recently they had 100,000 police, 100,000 military personnel, plus 600,000 “volunteers,” not to mention the 300,000 surveillance cameras and microphones. “How might they be used after the Olympics?” some were asking.

The next verse in chapter 1 of Revelation (verse eight) relates to the underlying concerns from God’s viewpoint. Is He still in control? Can He handle everything that’s coming? In particular, will the world survive as we know it? Will the Christian church survive in a secular and religiously fractured world? What about me? Will I and my family survive what appears to be the end of time? Verse 8 states: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord. I like to label this verse, “Our God is Able.” This concept will be important to remember as Revelation unfolds future events.

God begins here with a proclamation—I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. What are we supposed to make of that statement? Why does it even crop up here? And so what? What does it have to do with me and my future? So let’s explore this verse. It doesn’t take long to discover that “alpha and omega” are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, the language in which the New Testament was written. The next phrase, “beginning and end,” seems to fit well with that concept. It’s like saying the A and the Z, the beginning and the end of the alphabet (and everything in between).

There is another scripture which provides insight, I believe, into the concepts represented here. Hebrews 12:2 says Jesus is “the author and finisher of our faith.” This says to me that what God begins He can finish—He is able. As the author and finisher of my faith personally, if I entrust my life to Him and leave it there, He will see to it that all that is necessary for my salvation will be accomplished. His part involves His sacrificial death and intercessory ministry. My part includes acceptance by faith of what He has done for me and allowing Him to transform my character. He doesn’t get half way through and say, “oops! I didn’t see that coming.” Or, “O, dear, I guess that’s too hard for me.” He doesn’t force the will, but as we cooperate with Him, he works such miracles of change in our lives that even angels must be amazed. It matters not then whether we live or die—our salvation is secure in Him. Remember the three young Hebrews in Daniel when confronted with death said, “Our God is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace. But if He chooses not to, it still doesn’t make any difference. We will trust Him anyway.” So it may be with us. It is an important issue in these end times of earth’s history as we shall see later in Revelation, as well as in Daniel.

Now how does this next phrase fit the picture? “Who was and is and is to come.” This expresses the eternal nature of God—He had no beginning, is now present, and has no end. I can sort of understand no ending, but trying to grasp the idea of no beginning blows all my circuits—it’s virtually incomprehensible to me. You also may be thinking, you just got through talking about beginning and ending (author and finisher), and now you say He has no beginning or ending. Actually, both are true. In terms of our lives, He is the beginning and end, but in the cosmic picture, He is much greater than that. He is before all things (as Creator of all) and is the source of eternal life for us. As the great Creator God, then, He is able to have ultimate control over this world—He will have the final say so in spite of what man seems to be getting away with right now. Thus I can have confidence that in the end His will will prevail. When we studied Daniel 2 briefly about Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the great image, we noted that in the end God sets up His kingdom which destroys all others, but is not destroyed itself. So I can know this earth will not be totally destroyed by either man-made or natural catastrophes until Jesus physically comes. He is able to control that.

Finally, this verse describes God as “the Almighty.” The word is first used in the Old Testament in Hebrew as “El Shaddai.” A song has even been written with that title. In Genesis, when God comes to Abraham and makes a covenant with Him, He describes Himself as “El Shaddai,” “the Almighty”—the all-powerful one. It is used in connection with making a covenant treaty with Abraham and his descendants which includes specific promises. This implies to me that God is able to take care of His followers and His church down through the ages till He comes. Oh, they may suffer trials and be persecuted and die before then, but ultimately, as verse 7 describes, He will come again and take them to be with Him forever (see John 14:1-3).

Yes, our God is able to provide eternal security for us personally, to have ultimate control over the affairs of earth, to take care of His church, and to prepare an eternal home for His people. Don’t you want to serve a God like that and be with Him forever and ever and ever?

PRISON MINISTRY–1:9

If I were writing this to you from Guantanamo, Alcatraz, or Abu Ghraib, what would you think? Would you wonder what crime I had committed? It’s somewhat like that in Revelation 1:9. John says he’s on the isle of Patmos. His readers would know that as an island penal colony for serious offenders. So they wouldn’t misjudge the situation, John immediately explains the real reasons for his internment—“for the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ,” i.e. because he was a Christian. Though essentially imprisoned, yet in writing this letter to the churches he would do his best to minister to them from afar.
Yet in this verse I also see some elements of what the Christian witness is all about. For example, he starts off by saying, “I, John, your brother and companion in tribulation and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ…” Right at the beginning he’s following a good first principle—he is establishing common ground with those he is communicating with. “I’m going through trials similar to what you’re experiencing. I’m also a part of the kingdom of God like you are.” He puts himself in the same boat they are in—he’s not talking down to them. This can be a very useful approach in our Christian witness also.

Secondly, he states he is in Patmos for the sake of the Word of God. This tells me that he believed in and proclaimed the truth of God’s Word. He was not preaching just someone’s opinions, but the clear Word of Scripture. This is also critical for our witness—that we stick to the Word as the basis for our teaching, not human opinion.

Thirdly, he says he was there for the “testimony of Jesus Christ.” This suggests to me that he wasn’t just preaching doctrinal discourses, but was making Jesus his focus. Apparently his persecutors couldn’t stand this emphasis on Jesus then anymore than they could when Jesus Himself was alive on the earth. Jesus needs to be front and center in all our witness and teaching. People need to see Him as the source of our salvation and His atoning sacrifice as the central truth around which all others truths cluster.

Finally, I believe there is another implied reason underlying why John was on Patmos. He evidently practiced what he preached or he likely would not have been there—the authorities probably would have paid him little or no attention. If we don’t practice what we preach, people aren’t likely to give us much credence either. People today want to know if what we believe really makes a difference. The so-called “post-modern” world wants to see authenticity—will I truly be better off for believing and accepting this as a lifestyle principle or is it really irrelevant? What has it done for you?”

To summarize:
1. Establish common ground where possible.
2. Make the Word your foundation and basis of teaching.
3. Make Jesus foremost and be sure you know Him as your own personal Savior.
4. Put into practice what you preach.

In these last days of turmoil, uncertainty, and fear, there is urgent need of this Christian witness to bring assurance of a caring Savior and of the better things He is preparing for His people. Revelation will help us understand this better.

THE LORD’S DAY IN REVELATION–1:10

Which day is it? Does it really matter? Why is it even mentioned here at the beginning of the book? What does it mean to be “in the spirit”? Are these expressions just incidental to the story or do they have special significance?
Revelation 1:10 states: “ I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,… Does the trumpet suggest anything? Let’s take a closer look.

First, I want to say up front that these issues(“in the spirit”/spirit of prophecy, Lord’s Day) will become more prominent later in the book of Revelation and at the end time, even becoming quite controversial. So their introduction at this point is not haphazard. But I will leave the details for later on, perhaps even starting another category or two at some point.
But for now, first of all, what does “in the spirit” mean? Simply put, it means John was having a visionary experience. For example, in chapter 4:1, 2, John refers to the “voice like a trumpet” again, then immediately follows it by saying “Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold,…” In chapter 17:3 it states “he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness.” I talked in an earlier blog about these visionary experiences that prophets had, almost like a “virtual reality” experience, like seeing and experiencing something that appeared on the mental visual screen but was not happening in reality. Later (Rev. 19:10) we’ll see the term “spirit of prophecy,” which will be important at the end. More later, perhaps another category sometime.
What about the “Lord’s Day”? How you interpret that depends on whether you use the Bible’s definition or on how the term was used in later years. In later years and even still today, probably most Christians have used it to refer to Sunday, the first day of the week. Our position in this presentation has been to see what the Bible has to say before looking elsewhere. So here goes. The exact term is not used elsewhere in the Bible. The Bible reference that comes closest to using that term is Matthew 12:8: “For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” (NASB) Exodus 20:10 states explicitly that “the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.” You do not see this kind of statement make about any other day of the week. I remember being in discussion with a professor of a local Bible college who acknowledged that if we were going to use the Bible only to explain that term, the Bible Sabbath is what we would come up with. Why would this concept be important to Revelation? Perhaps because the 10 commandments would fall into disrepute in some Christian circles in the end time and also because the Sabbath strikes against the heart of evolutionary theory, which denies the role of the Creator as described in Genesis 1. The Sabbath is a call to remember the Creator: “For in six days the Lord made the heavens and he earth,…” Ex. 20:11 That issue is a hot topic even today, especially in our educational systems, as well as in many churches. While these topics can be sometimes controversial, it will be well for us to more closely investigate them in a cordial spirit to see what the real truth is.

As far as the voice like a trumpet is concerned, it could be simply associated with an important announcement of information or arrival of an important person (like our fanfares). It was certainly both on this occasion. It could also be a reminder of the trumpet blown before the giving of the 10 commandments (Exodus 19:16) or of the trumpets blown before the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:24) which was considered the day of judgment for the Jewish religious cycle. That could be an allusion to the day of judgment in Revelation and for our time as well.

It appears obvious that the messages being brought to John are so important to God that He makes a personal appearance to introduce them. This also suggests we should give them our close attention, for they likely have a strong bearing on our walk with God, as well as enlightening us regarding God’s dealings with mankind during these last days. And remember, if He didn’t care deeply and intensely about us, He wouldn’t bother. But He loved us enough to send His only Son to die in our place, that ultimately we might have a home with Him for eternity.

SEVEN CHURCHES–1:11

Seven seems to be a popular number in Revelation. In chapter 1:11 7 congregations are listed by name. Why these 7? Does it make any difference what order they are in? Who cares? Are they even real congregations or just fictional symbols? Why does Revelation even bother with this whole section (chapters 2 and 3) since they don’t appear on the surface to be prophetic? But that’s precisely why we need to look beneath the surface–in order to discover their real purpose for showing up here.
At least two of the named churches are listed elsewhere in the Bible in non-prophetic settings so we can safely assume they are all real. Paul writes his letter to the Ephesians in the church at Ephesus, (tradition says John was the pastor there just before writing the book of Revelation) and in his letter to the Colossians, Paul asks them to forward it to the church in Laodicea.
But why these seven? And, since this is a symbolic book, what are they supposed to symbolize? Geographically, these churches can be visited sequentially, starting with Ephesus on the coast and proceeding inland, ending with Laodicea. They are in close proximity to each other in what is today the country of Turkey. I would like to suggest three ways of looking at the seven messages to come.

First, since these were real congregations, they no doubt could see themselves reflected in the respective 7 messages. Each message would have immediate analysis and counsel for specific situations they faced. But while these messages had real meaning for the churches in John’s day, a second interpretation also comes into play here. We have seen in the paradigm of Daniel 2 that a long-term prophecy begins in the prophet’s day and continues to develop down to the time of the end (our day). The same principle happens here: Each congregation becomes a symbol for a successive era in the history of the Christian church from John’s day to our own day. In other words, the church in Ephesus represented the state of the church in John’s day, with the others following in different historical eras till we arrive at the Laodicean church, representing the state of the church in our day. We will see this in more detail when we come to chapters 2 and 3.

Thirdly, there are spiritual lessons from these churches we can all learn even today. The church today, while primarily described in general terms by the church at Laodicea, can also in a sense be seen as a composite of all the churches—there are some who have lost their first love, some who are on fire, some are being persecuted, some are lukewarm, etc. So prophetically, these churches describe the Christian church’s development over the 2000 years after John, yet they all have lessons for all of us to learn even today as well. And yes, the order of their listing is important, because they must reflect the state of the church in successive eras, and it was different in each era, reflecting a particular one of the 7 churches.

When we come to chapters 2 and 3 we will also see how important Jesus was/is to all these congregations. Meanwhile, John has been commissioned to write down these messages in a book or scroll and send it to the seven churches. It doesn’t say whether he wrote seven different copies or, more likely, wrote one copy to be passed along to the successive congregations. It is probable they then made their own copy of his scroll. But let us continue to see what else Revelation has to say about its main character.

JESUS–JUDGE OR SAVIOR? (1:12, 13)

Does that question in the title sound like a contradiction in terms? Is Jesus one or the other? Or both? Is the concept of Jesus as judge biblical or unbiblical? The next section in Revelation chapter 1 (verses 12-16) give us a portrait of Jesus that is quite different to that seen in the gospels. The only similar description is in chapter 10 of the book of Daniel. Why is this included here—what is its significance? And what does it have to do with our title? Let’s take a closer look.
Remember, John is in exile on the island of Patmos for his faith. He apparently is somewhere there meditating on “the Lord’s day,” and he turns around to see this “voice” he has just heard speaking to him. The first thing to catch his eye is seven golden lampstands. Immediately we think of the 7-branched lampstand made for the original tent tabernacle in the book of Exodus. Later, in Solomon’s time, they had 10 such lampstands for the permanent tabernacle. But Jesus explains the symbolic meaning of these in verse 20 when He says they stand for the seven churches we have already referred to in the previous posting. I have noticed that when the original sanctuary (tabernacle) was made (with one lampstand), all of God’s people (His “church” as it were) were located in one geographical location, camped around that sanctuary. But by New Testament times, circumstances have changed, and God’s people are much more scattered. We can perhaps see that symbolically illustrated by the fact that there are now 7 lampstands representing 7 congregations which are no longer in one literal geographical location but rather somewhat scattered. The literal congregations were not in the country of Israel, but what is today western Turkey.

The implication is that the emphasis is shifting from literal, ethnic Israel, to a more spiritual Israel in God’s plans. I am reminded of the apostle Paul’s words in Galatians 3:29: “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” That suggests that if you are a follower of Christ, then you become an heir to all the promises made to Abraham. That doesn’t mean Jews are excluded. It simply means that their ethnicity does not make them heirs of the promises—it is their acceptance of Jesus the Messiah, the same condition as everyone else. In his letter to the Romans, Paul further elaborated on this concept: “For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called.’ That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.” Romans 9:6-8. And explaining further, in chapter 2:28, 29 he states: “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.” To put it in a different way, our “Jewishness” is not determined by our earthly birth, but by our second birth, what the Bible calls being “born again.” That was the same thing Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:3, 5. We could add Paul’s comment in 1 Corinthians 15:50 that “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.” So for anyone to inherit the promises made to Abraham and his descendents, they must first become a follower of Jesus, be “born again.”

Having taken that “detour,” let’s come back to our text. Where do we see Jesus in all this? Verse 13 of Revelation 1 shows Him surrounded by the seven churches (lampstands). Since these lampstands allude to the sanctuary in the Old Testament, I am reminded of God’s original stated purpose for having Israel make a sanctuary in the first place: “Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.” Exodus 25:8. At a more personal level, God states in Isaiah 57:15: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit.” It has always been the desire of God to dwell with His people. He loves them and wants to be around them. In Matthew 1:23 Isaiah is quoted as saying, “they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, ‘God with us.’” The ultimate end of all this is described in Revelation 21:3: “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.”

By now you may be wondering if I am ever going to get around to the topic listed in the title—is Jesus judge or savior? Does it have to be either/or? Can it be both? Why do I bring up this topic in this text? Let’s check it out. I believe this text introduces a section that sees Jesus as both judge and savior and that this is a portrayal that holds true throughout the book of Revelation. I see it hinted at in the clothing He is wearing—a garment girded about the chest with a golden band. The only other time that exact description is mentioned, it is in connection with the seven angels having the seven last plagues to be poured out in judgment upon the earth. (see Revelation 15:6)

If you want an even more explicit reference to Jesus as judge, note John 5:22: “For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son.” But doesn’t this seem to be in conflict with the idea of the gospel? How can He be our judge and savior at the same time? For one thing, in the Jewish legal system, the judge was actually to be an advocate for the defendant and to try and find a way to acquit him. Only after all options had been exhausted would the judge then have to condemn the prisoner. As far as the judgment being against the gospel, Paul comments in Romans 2:16 that “God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.” Jesus’ primary purpose is to free us from condemnation and death, but if we refuse, if we insist on our own way and reject His plans and purposes for us, then He has no choice but to respect our choice and pronounce sentence upon us.

There is a tendency sometimes to go to extremes—either Jesus is so loving He would never condemn, judge, or destroy. Or He is so just He could never love or forgive. The truth is He is a blend of both mercy and justice. In a self-revelation of His own character, He described Himself as follows: “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty…” Note that His mercy does not mean He can’t also exercise justice (“by no means clearing the guilty”—those who reject His offers). In Revelation He is also depicted as both a lion and a lamb. He is a balanced person, not an extremist.

Remember also that judgment is not always a negative experience. Let’s say you bring a lawsuit into court and the judge decides in your favor—wouldn’t that aspect be positive for you? Note that in the judgment as Daniel 7:22 puts it, “judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.” In fact, in Revelation 6:10 the cry goes out, “How long, O lord, holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” That cry also shows up in several of the Psalms. It is as if God’s saints can’t wait for God to judge, for finally things will be set right. Things may be corrupt here and now and sometimes life is unfair, but the time is coming when all will be made right.

Perhaps another way to look at this judgment theme in Revelation 1 is more like an interim judgment at this point in time, like an check-up to see if everything is shipshape, checking to see if any adjustments need to be made before the final “inspection”. Schools often do a self-evaluation before the accrediting committee comes, to be sure they have covered all the bases and are ready for the final evaluation. I believe God wants us to “pass” the final judgment successfully, so He does all He can to get us ready. While it true that there is a serious and sober side to the judgment, the way it is often presented it only scares people to death. I sometimes think of it like going through security at the airport. We might be somewhat annoyed by the process, but we like to think that as a result there will be no “terrorists” on board with us. God assures us through the judgment process there will be no “spiritual terrorists” in heaven–no one who will start the whole sin problem all over again. It will be secure for eternity.

Finally, it seems fitting that Jesus should have the final say, since our eternal life hangs on whether we accept or reject Him. “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” John 3:36. Jesus longs for us to be with Him eternally. He has promised to come back for His people (John 14:1-3), and remember, to make this all possible was not an easy task. Hebrews 12:2 speaks of Jesus as “the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right and of the throne of God.” His joy was the idea of many people who would be eternally saved to live with Him if He went through the cross experience. Let’s not disappoint Him.