Revelation 1
Use this guide to help your group discussion as you meet this week.
Transcript
Good morning it's not just said we're in the Book of Revelation the last book of the Bible so if you flip to the end you're going to find it you can follow along with us we're going to be in chapter one today uh we're doing Revelation three parts the part one is uh the letters which we'll get to uh in a little bit uh but this is also just a disclaimer this is my first sermon back since being back from sabatical and I just we have we have a teaching that we uh was the.
First opportunity to preach this and and work on this together and I was amped like I just was so excited to be back so I don't know what's going to happen I'm I'm excited about the Book of Revelation but uh but also I might we'll see what this goes I just this is a this F for what happens next um I Heard a about a poll that was done that asked uh preachers what is the book that you are least excited about to preach and it was the Book of Revelation and they also asked members what is the book you most want to hear preached and it was the Book of Revelation.
So why why the discrepancy why the why is that response uh this is one of the most difficult books in the Bible to interpret uh because it is apocalyptic literature okay so we'll get to more of that in a moment on what that means for this book but that makes this more uh welcome back is that bad all right we'll do this like rat battle style which fits with how amped I am all right so it's one of the most difficult books in the Bible to interpret.
Because it is apocalyptic in nature in fact GK Chesterton once said he said St John saw many strange monsters in his vision he saw no creature as wild as one of its own commentators and it's like yeah you you read a lot of different commentaries a lot of different takes on this book you can get some pretty wild takes Martin Luther once said uh in the most blunt fashion which is that is Martin Luther what he would do uh he said many people have brewed stupid things in their heads in trying to understand this book.
So there are a lot of opinions on this book and I would say some strong ones out there and and what happens is is that this book and the content in it also kind of shows up in in popular culture so when I grew up uh in the 90s Left Behind was the book series I mean like it transcended culture I mean it was just a really popular book series so popular that they made a movie out of it so popular that years later they made another movie with Nick Cage in it.
So if you didn't know that Nick Cage is in a Christian film that deals with some of the things that is in the Book of Revelation and what happened was is that kind of seeped into a lot of our thought like I my brother one time he went to uh he showed up to youth group and there were like two or three kids it was a big youth group it two or three kids and he said what happened and the kids looked at him and said dude you missed it man the Rapture happened.
For a moment they had him like he just because there's just like oh that was the that was the the the air of the day was just like oh no it's it's happening right and some of you like okay I that's fine you obviously grew up hearing about these things I don't really know anything about the Book of Revelation and I'd say well actually I think you know more than you think uh it shows up a lot in uh references all over the English language the imagery of the Pearly Gates of Heaven which shows up in a lot of bad jokes that that comes from the Book of Revelation you ever heard of the number.
666 And some of the evil mystery that surrounds that number that comes from the Book of Revelation if you've heard the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse that comes from the Book of Revelation in fact the popular use of apocalypse actually comes from The Book of Revelation so there's a lot going on there and some of you are excited to be in this book maybe a little too excited all right so when you get a group tone it down a little bit you might scare some.
Okay so some of you are nervous and you're nervous because you have a fear of the future and and uncertainty some of you are nervous because you maybe have been a part of churches or small groups or Community groups where this became a divisive subject which is as Matt just prayed it's not going to be for our Church uh we're going to be unified in this but before we really jump into all the details that are going to be in this book in chapter one I want to give a little bit of an overview and I want to help us.
See the big picture because there's a lot of debate as we're going to get into this in the series a lot of debate and and discussion over some of the finer details that are throughout this book but while some of that is debated and some of that may be less clear there's one thing that is abundantly clear there's a main big picture that we cannot miss that we're going to see in chapter one that's going to guide us throughout the rest of our time in Revelation we're going to.
See four things that make up this big picture of the whole book so let me pray for us and then uh we'll walk This Together heavenly father I pray that you might help us have hearts to receive your word that it might mold us and shape us and conform us into your image in a way that helps us behold you for who you are in Jesus name amen all right so uh verse one the Revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him to show his servants the things that must soon take place all right.
So a few things out the gate it's Revelation not Revelations it's a common mistake just the one not a plural set of Visions just one Revelation I had a a professor in college who got super annoyed when people would put S at the end of it so we like just emphatically would say Revelations we like just draw it out you could just see it was fun uh for people who are in a Bible class but that it's just the one so Revelation singular in the Greek word.
For that word uh Revelation in the original language was apocalypsis apocalypsis which you can guess that's where we got the word apocalypse from apocalypsis in the Greek just means revealing that's why we call it Revelation so next time uh if you want to fund Jesus Juke at work right in the office or the shop wherever you work if someone starts especially if it's about the election they start talking about oh this person gets elected the apocalypse is happening just kind of Juke on in and say.
Well actually I just learned that apocalypse comes from the Greek word apocalypsis which just means revealing it's actually the revealing of Jesus Christ you have a few minutes where I can share you the Gospel of Jesus Christ you will you will be a big hit at work that's just that's bonus content y'all that's for free all right so it's a revealing of Christ the main figure in this book it's about Christ and his revealing and specifically what's going to happen in the end of this age.
So it's going to be talking about things that are present but also things that are to come some of you may be familiar with that language of eschatology which you might hear throughout this series and that is the the uh study of the last things in the end of this page and that's what Revelation is going to be a lot focusing on so Jesus is the main figure of this Revelation and then I want us to focus on the first part which I think is the.
First part of this big picture that is crucial to understanding this book and that is that this is an apocalyptic book this is an apocalyptic book which means it's it's apocalyptic genre the style of writing is apocalyptic and that's important because that's different sometimes uh you may have an approach that thinks the Bible is just all this you know it's all the same literature but it's not actually they're different styles of writing W in the gospels are a biography of sorts really a theological biography that focuses on the last three years of Jesus's life and communicating bigger theological points The Book of Proverbs is wisdom literature.
So you would read the gospels different than you would the pro Book of Proverbs and other wisdom literature in the same way you read apocalyptic writings different so the Book of Revelation the last part of of Daniel the book of Daniel 7 onward parts of the Book of Ezekiel these are apocalyptic writings which means you have to approach them differently and in apocalyptic writings there's a lot of symbols a lot of symbols that point towards a very real fulfillment a very real future and that statement in and of itself that it's symbolic that points to a real future that's going to be examined over and over and over again throughout this series.
So when we study this book when we read this book together you're going to see a lot of images a lot of symbols you're going to see the scroll and the lamb some of the things we just sang about you going to read about the Seven Seals the 144,000 the seven Trumpets the seven bowls and there's a lot of debate over what each of these symbols mean and that's a part that really drives a lot of Christians crazy because I mean some people just like can I just have like a straightforward Narrative of how this is how.
Jesus is coming like can we just get that maybe you're the kind of person that in English class you know yall were reading animal farm and Animal Farm is you know it's it's a it's just points to a bigger story and the other kids in class were like yeah and like you know the pigs represent communism and they get all into it you're just like I could it could oral have just written a straightforward paper on how communism was bad you're the kind of person just give me just tell tell me what it tell me what it is right.
If that's your posture then parts of this series May annoying but I I want to ask you and invite you to really have a a humble posture that God has chosen to reveal this to us that God has chosen to uh speak in a way that shows how he's going to make all things new like this and that maybe we should just have a humble posture that says okay there's some mystery here I'm trying to figure this out but we should have a posture of humility as we approach some of these symbols and what you're going to.
See is that in apocalyptic literature like this a lot of these symbols are going to repeat themselves like you're going to see similarities between them over and over again they're kind of repeating making a bigger picture of what is actually how God is going to make all things new it's similar to a mosaic a mosaic is a is a big picture that's made up of a lot of smaller pictures and so if if there was a mosaic of Nick Cage it would be Nick Cage's face with a bunch of pictures of him in from all his movies and all the crazy stuff he's done and it makes up this bigger picture.
So a lot of ways that's what apocalyptic writing is like and that's what the Book of Revelation is like it's a lot of individual pictures and what happens is is that we might focus on those little pictures that are fuzzy and get lost when we what what we need to do is to to step back and see the bigger picture of what's happening so as we walk through a lot of the symbols in this book in this apocalyptic book we need to keep that in mind and we're going to spend some more time in this actually even going we're going to have a training weekend on September 13th which you want to mark your calendar.
You can sign up for that but we're going to have a night that we will do things a little bit different than we do on Sunday morning to to dive further into this so we can understand this book correctly so this is apocalyptic genre it's crucial for us understanding everything that follows all right I've just been the first verse and we got to keep going because we got a whole chapter to go through all right so he made it known it continues by sending his Angel to his servant John who verse two bore witness to the word of.
God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ even to all that he saw all right so who is this John uh there's some debate on this uh but Church history has largely agreed on this this is the same John the Apostle John who wrote the Gospel of John first second and third John he probably wrote this at the end of his life when he was exiled on the Ireland of Patmos around 85 to 95 uh ad under the reign of Dom Mission.
So that's some background on who this Revelation is being revealed to first so we're going to see that John is recording this and Jesus and an angel throughout this book are revealing this to him all right verse three blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy and blessed are those who hear and who keep what is written in it for the time is near all right pause if you were like me and you're not excited about this book.
For fill in the blank reason we we're wrong what it just said blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy you are blessed to read this book you are blessed to sit under uh this word we so we get to repent and change and have a better attitude otherwise the fall is going to be super long you guys verse four John to the seven churches that are in Asia all right here comes the curveball this book is not just apocalyptic it is also a letter that's the.
Second big thing you need to see this is an apocalyptic book and a letter it's a letter so why it's part one is called the letters Revelation Chapter 2 and chap three are seven letters that are written to seven different churches we're going to sit in each one of those letters to to see what uh John has to say to those churches but also what it means for us as well so in typical New Testament letter fashion John starts with a greeting he says grace to you in peace from him who is and who was and who is to come.
So fairly normal start very similar to language in the rest of the New Testament in the letters that are written and from the seven spirits who are Before the Throne and it begins a lot of this coming up all right and it says and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness the firstborn of the dead and the ruler of Kings on Earth okay seven what seven Spirits what is John talking about I'm going to tell you something three words that you're going to hear l in this series I don't know I don't know.
For sure now is is it seven angels who are in the presence of God is that what's happening here or is this language for the Holy Spirit because seven as we're going to see throughout this book is a number for completion and this is the fullness of the Holy Spirit I lean that way I think that makes the most sense especially because in a lot of letters there's you see trinitarian language father Son and Holy Spirit and that's all right here.
So it makes sense that it is but I'm not sure and there's a lot of debate over that and you're going to hear that a lot this series I don't know some people interpret it this way some people interpret it this way so there'll be a lot of this as we walk through this book and I'll just say this if you come across anyone that is like really really sure of themselves B Revelation like you you're on YouTube like deep in YouTube and all of a sudden someone just says like I I have the secrets of this book I'm going to show you how it's going to happen how it's going to go down like.
And subscribe or whatever book you may have came across where there's such certainty and how they understood the Book of Revelation may I suggest that you keep scrolling because they have an arrogance that 2,000 years of Church history doesn't have brothers and sisters for 2,000 years have just had Parts just gone I don't know and that's okay it's it's a difficult book to interpret so I would suggest that as we study this together to be careful about what you watch and be careful about what you read.
Because there are a lot of wild takes and I bet you that person also has a YouTube channel on the Illuminati and chemtrails like that there some of that goes hand in hand so just Revelation is not that simple as we're going to see so then we get this beautiful Declaration of the Gospel continues say to him who loves us and that is the love of Christ and has freed us from our sins by his blood that's the atoning work of Christ's blood that covers our sin and made us verse six a kingdom priests to his.
God and Father the Church is a kingdom of priests a holy nation declaring the Gospel and the glory of God to him be glory and Dominion forever and ever amen that's a pretty good start to the letter and he's not done like he just exalted that's the gopel right there he spent a whole sermon on that right there and he's like I that's not I I need one more amen then he goes in verse 7 behold he is coming with the clouds and every eye will.
See him even those who pierced him and all tribes of the earth will whail on account of him even so amen what we kind of see here is that first Declaration of the Gospel is a celebration of what Christ has done for his Church but the second amen is a declaration of what God is going to do when judgment comes to those who don't believe he this is Christ coming on the clouds that's Daniel 7 apocalyptic language Jesus coming on the clouds Judgment Day language here every I will.
See even those who murdered and pierced Christ that judgment comes to all unbelievers from every tribe nation and tongues out the gate we see it's also a warning for those who do not believe those you do not need the warnings that are found in this book then we get this quote from Jesus in verse 8 that shows up later in the Book of Revelation I am the Alpha and the Omega says the Lord God who is and who was and who is to come the almighty and that language there Alpha and Omega is the.
First and last letter of the Greek alphabet and it just is is a statement it says I'm I'm the beginning I created all things and I am the end bring this to its conclusion Christ is God verse n i John is John's appear here I John your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus the.
Third thing I want us to see this is an apocalyptic book and a letter written to A persecuted people written to A persecuted people so John says your partner in the tribulation that is the trials sufferings and persecution of himself and those seven churches in that time onward that that's what he means by tribulation here he's talking about the present real sufferings and persecution that they are enduring that's going to be important for us to remember they were enduring heavy persecution.
When the Church began shortly after there was persecution in Jerusalem and the Church spread all across uh Asia and uh uh Europe and then Emperor like Nero came along around 65 665 May and absolutely persecuted Christians in some absolutely Insidious ways the kind of persecution that arrested tortured and then burnt Christians at the stake at night as literal human torches for the streets that's the kind of persecution the Church was enduring all the way to do Mission which is what we think is the time that John is writing in the Church is enduring heavy persecution I mean John is on Patmos and we know from we can uh tell from Church history that he's there.
Because he was exiled it's part of his persecution after there's some debate on this but some Church historians uh will read sources and say that he was actually Bo he's the only disciple that wasn't martyred but he was actually uh boiled in oil and then in Patos Exile so this is written to A persecuted people that context is going to be incredibly important for understanding a lot of the language that is in this in fact I would argue that there are churches all across the world that are currently being persecuted in ways that are that are heavy and severe they actually love the Book of Revelation they love it they.
Because it is a comfort to them to know that Christ will come to judge all those who have opposed him and to know that Christ is coming back so it's important context all right verse 10 it says I was in the spirit on the Lord's day this is John talking which again you could post up we're not going to be in Revelation for a full year but you can do a whole sermon on that right there because this is the only reference from the New Testament to the Lord's day and it's kind of beautiful.
Because the Lord's day is this that's the day it's Sunday it's the tradition where uh the Church chose to uh worship Christ on Sunday it's kind of our Sabbath where we get to worship Christ and we see the early parts of this tradition beginning here and that's the reason we meet here even now but again got to keep going I was in the spirit on the Lord's day and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying write what you.
See in a book and send it to the seven churches to Ephesus these are the seven churches Ephesus and to smea and to pergamum and to thyra and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and leoda so we're going to see that this is written to a bunch of persecuted churches over the next seven weeks as you sit in each of these letters so while worshiping the Lord he gets this prophetic Vision he hears a voice sounds like a trumpet it's booming write this to the seven churches.
And then he turns around and seas verse 12 then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man clothed with a long robed with a golden sash around his chest the hairs of his head were white like white wool like snow his eyes were like a flame of fire his feet were like burnished bronze refined in a furnace and his voice was like the Roar of many Waters and his right hand he held Seven Stars from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
Wo welcome to apocalyptic writings I mean there's a lot going on there John receives this Vision he starts writing it down and he sees Christ the glorified ascended on high Christ and all of his majesty and it's a terrifying beautiful picture his clothes are white his hair is white his eyes are like fire his voice is like a roar of a r raging River it's a powerful picture and then he talks about the seven lampstands and the Seven Stars and it's like.
Okay what does that mean and once we get past chapter 2 and three we're going to see lots of pictures like this and that's kind of the difficult part of interpreting these book is what what what does that mean however we get thrown a bone here because Jesus just tells us what it means early on so verse 17 when I saw him I fell at his feet though dead which catch that he just so overwhelmed he falls on his face before the glorified Christ.
But he laid his right hand on me saying fear not I am the first and the last and the living one it's just just the the so terrifying so Wonder and then puts his right hand on says fear not that's our savior right there he says I I died and behold I am alive forever more and I have the keys of death and Hast write therefore the things that you have seen those that are and those uh those that are and those that are to take place after this as.
For the mystery of the Seven Stars that you saw in my right hand and the Seven golden lampstands the Seven Stars are the angels of the seven churches and the Seven lampstands are the seven churches so we get some interpretive help there Christ seven lampstands are the seven churches that we're going to read about over the next seven weeks and the Seven Stars the seven angels that reside over those churches which we'll get to that in the coming weeks as well.
So when you look at the images here from chapter four onward they paint a picture of the Revelation of Christ and how he's going to bring an end to all things before he makes all things new and there's a lot of symbols there's a lot of there a lot of content in it can make your head spin a little bit and as we read the rest of the letter what what the danger of what can happen is that we can get lost in some of those details I heard one pastor like people forget this is the Revelation of.
Jesus Christ not the Revelation of the War of the Worlds and that is right it's a Revelation of Jesus Christ and I think what Left Behind did in really a lot of of writings like that is it put so much focus on some of those fuzzy details that have been debated for over 2,000 years of Church history that it really made the American Church lose thread of what this is all about so as we go through the Book of Revelation here is the big picture this is an apocalyptic book and a letter written to A persecuted people telling them to endure.
Because Jesus is coming that's the big picture it is an apocalyptic book and a letter written to A persecuted people telling them to endure because Jesus is coming back that's the big picture of Revelation that is Crystal Clear we may have some differences of opinion on some of the Minor Details of this book but there is no debate on how that is the big picture what's happening and I love that I'm so thankful I'm so thankful you go back a few verses and says fear not Christ puts his hand on him says fear not I'm the.
First and the last and the living one that's that Alpha and Omega language he says I'm it I'm the first and last he I I died and behold I'm alive forever more and I have the keys of death in Hades right therefore the things that you have seen those that are and those that are to take place after this to a people who are suffering deeply the effects of tribulation and trials to hear that Christ is coming back is incredible news it is incredible to hear he is coming back that that is what's going to help them endure that knowledge that certainty that Christ will come and he will make all things new and he.
Will judge the wicked that is good news to a people who are suffering so deeply and so we're going to walk through a lot of this vision and we're going to see all the different parts and then we're going to see at the end how Christ comes and how he comes to make all things new and if he flip the final chapter of the Bible in Revelation 22 you get these pictures of the Church of Jesus Christ and just we've we've.
So clung to these in the hope that is bound in verse 12 chapter 22 says Jesus says behold I am coming soon bringing my recompense with me to repay each one for what he has done I am the Alpha and the Omega the first and the last the beginning and the end in a time of suffering to know that the God who rules sovereignly over all things is I am coming and and and and weay for recompense it's going judgment will come.
But I'm also going to make all things new and the final verses of the Bible this verse 20 says he testifies to these things saying surely I am com soon and John says amen come Lord Jesus the refrain of the Church for 2,000 years come Lord Jesus the grace of the Lord Jesus be with all amen there is certainty Christ is coming and we we may have some some disagreements I'm sure on how all that's going to unfold but he is coming which means that this present moment though painful at times this present life though filled with suffering at times it pales in comparison to what awaits that the present suffering that is very real.
That we feel right now that feels so long it is going to end and there is a day coming where there is no more pain where there is no more death where there is no more suffering where there are no more trials Christ will make all things new and the Church of Jesus Christ for 2,000 years has collectively rejoiced saying come Lord Jesus make all things new come that's the hope that we have and some of you are are feeling the effects of suffering right.
Now some of you are physically suffering you're physically feeling the effects of your body decaying and wearing away and the physical loss maybe chronic pain you if you feel that suffering some of you are suffering emotionally there is deep sadness and maybe even depression that you are living in right now some of you are suffering spiritually maybe it's doubt maybe it is spiritual warfare that you are just you feel on a very everpresent basis some of you are suffering relationally that following Christ has cost you relationally with friends with family.
And while we're not being burned in the streets like the New Testament Church we feel it we feel the very physical and emotional spiritual we feel the reality of suffering now and I want to help us see so clearly in this series that Christ is coming the resurrection that awaits us is a reality that is what awaits us there is a day coming where there is only endless joy and all the pain of this present life is dist that what awaits us.
Because that is true we can't endure we can't hold on a little longer we can struggle and strive because we know that while the pain that we feel now in this present life is real it is but a moment and what awaits us is eternal and the Church for 2,000 years has held on to this letter with that hope in and that's what we're going to do in this series we're going to get into a lot of the details but we're going to keep the main thing the main thing Christ is coming and that is incredible news.
For the Church of Jesus Christ band's going to come up and we're going to behold God and His glory for who he is and worshiping y'all I brought joy to my soul to hear our Church sing this morning rejoicing in what Christ is going to do but the reality is this letter is not just for the Church it's not just for the Church to be told of how Christ is going to come back it's also a warning the reality is is that some of you may not know Christ you may not belong to him you have not tasted and seen that he's good and surrendered your life completely to him you don't belong to him.
And this wonderful mysterious Incredible Book is a warning to wake up and see the truth of the Gospel that Christ loves you so much that it came to rescue you and give you life with him for eternity that offer is for you to be spared of all the warnings all the things that are warned about later on in this letter that is offered to you and there's no better thing that you could do than right now to lay down your life and surrender to that savior a savior who is fearful and wonderful.
But also will put his right hand on you and invite you in the faith of him my hope is you would not leave today you would not leave this series without placing your hope in him so that you might experience the joy of Christ's Church worshiping and dividing in him for eternity let's pray Heavenly Father we thank you for the good news of the Gospel that saves we thank you that you're not leaving us here in our sin but you came to rescue us through faith alone in your life death and Resurrection.
But you are coming back help us right now believe that if there are Christians here that are suffering May that truth be so but it may Pierce through whatever is in their life that they may so behold you in your glory for who you are and for what you're going to do if there's anyone here that has not placed their faith in you Lord may you do it may you pierce their heart maybe you win them over to Faith and use they May Delight in you.
For eternity we ask this in Jesus name amen.