New Testament Reading: Revelation 1:1-8 

“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 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. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: 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 the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 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 wail on account of him. Even so. Amen. ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’” (Revelation 1:1–8, ESV)

Introduction

The sermon today is again devoted to introductory comments concerning the book of Revelation.

If I were to describe last weeks sermon with just one word I would use the word “deconstruction”. That really was my objective – to demonstrate that all of us come to the book of Revelation with presuppositions – assumptions – baggage. Most of us, I think, come with dispensational, pre-tribulational, pre-millennial baggage. We probably read Revelation with futuristic lenses on assuming that the book is mainly about things yet future to us. And so my objective last week was to begin to “deconstruct” all of that – to demonstrate, in a short time, that the futurist’s assumptions concerning the book of Revelation do not fit well with the evidence contained within the book itself.

Today I wish to build up. I hope to speak positively concerning how it is that we should approach the book of Revelation. I have seven principles for you. We will consider three today and four next Sunday. These are seven basic observations that will help us to consistently interpret Revelation correctly.

I should say from the outset that these seven principles are drawn straight from Dr. Dennis Johnson’s commentary on the book of Revelation called, “Triumph of the Lamb”. You will notice that the title of this sermon series is “Revelation – The Triumph of the Lamb”. I would typically go for a more original title, but I’m not ashamed to borrow this from Johnson’s commentary – the phrase is just so good! It’s a wonderful expression that manages to sum up the overall massage of the book of Revelation in just one line. Jesus has won the victory over all of his and all of our enemies through his humble, meek, and mild, life, death, burial, and resurrection. The lamb is triumphant indeed. The book of Revelation tells us all about that. Also, I thought it appropriate to give a nod to Dr. Johnson’s commentary in the subtitle of this series given the influence it’s had upon my interpretation of the book. It’s a good and very readable commentary on Revelation. There are other very important commentaries that are more technical and thorough (G.K. Beale’s, for example) but I would commend Johnson’s to you as good place to start if you want a good commentary on Revelation. I actually had the privilege of sitting in on Dr. Johnson’s class on the General Epistles and Revelation at Westminster So Cal a couple of years ago. Very good stuff indeed.

With that out of the way, here are seven basic principles that will help us immensely in our study of the book of Revelation. We should learn these principles and not forget them as we go on from here. They will be a great help to us as we deal with the details of the text in the months to come.

Revelation is Given to Reveal

The first principle is this: The book of Revelation is given to reveal.

The Greek title of the book of Revelation is ΑΠΟΚΑΛΥΨΙΣ ΙΩΑΝΝΟΥ. In English – “The Apocalypse of John”. The first three words of the book are, “Ἀποκάλυψις Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ”. In English – “The apocalypse of Jesus Christ”. When we hear the word “apocalypse” we tend to think of death and destruction – catastrophe! In fact, the word simply means disclosure, uncovering, or unveiling – revelation!

It is important to notice that the title of the book together with the first three words of the book lead the reader to believe that what they are about to read is going to, in fact, reveal something.

In our culture the most well known and frequent example of a revelation are the releases of the new iPhones. Every year or two a new version comes out. Some people obsess over it ahead of time wondering what the new features will be. Rumors abound. And then the day comes for the new device to be released. On that day everything that was mysterious before is made plain, clear, and obvious. What was hidden before is now clearly seen. The speculations cease when the thing has finally been revealed. This is what the book of Revelation does. It makes mysterious, hidden, and veiled things clear. It makes things hard to understand understandable.

But isn’t it ironic that the book of Revelation is often considered to be the most confusing, veiled, and mysterious book in the Bible?

May I suggest to you that the reason Revelation tends to confound instead of clarify is that we come to the book expecting it to reveal things that it does not promise to reveal. We want it tell us the specifics about our future. We come to it with questions like, “what role with the United States play in the end times? or, “who exactly the anti-Christ will be?”, or, “when exactly Christ will return?” – these are the kinds of questions we tend to ask. But Revelation does not claim to reveal these things. It is no wonder, then, that some walk away from the book frustrated, convinced that it is unclear. It’s not really unclear. It is, in fact, very clear to say what God wants it to say. It seems unclear, though, when we expect it to say something other than what it actually says. The problem is not with the book, but with us, and the presuppositions and exceptions that we bring to it.

The title and first three words of the book set us up to believe that what follows will in fact be clear, illuminating, insightful, revealing, and ultimately helpful to us. To put it another way, the title and intro suggest that we will say, “a ha!” after reading the book, and not “huh?”

So, if it true that Revelation never claims to reveal the specific details of our future experience – if it is true that Revelation does not reveal like we would expect a crystal ball to reveal – then what does it reveal?

Quoting Dr. Johnson, it reveals, “in vivid, visual form the invisible realities and forces that drive and therefore explain the course of observable historical events.” That’s worth repeating. Revelation reveals “in vivid, visual form the invisible realities and forces that drive and therefore explain the course of observable historical events.” I find that explanation to be very helpful.

What do we observe as human history unfolds? Well, we often see the unrighteous prosper, and the righteous go without. We often see those with power oppress those who are weak. We see those who promote false religion “succeed”, while the faithful struggle. And these observations of the world around us can be very discouraging to the people of God. It looks as if human history is out of God’s control. It appears that the enemies of God are winning. It seems as if it might be better to switch teams – to run with the world and to enjoy the pleasures and privileges that go along with that. This is how it seems when we look at the world – when we observe historical events – from a worldly and naturalistic perspective.

But Revelation pulls back the curtain to reveal – or to show in “vivid, visual form [through the use of symbolism] the invisible realities and forces that drive and therefore explain the course of observable historical events”. In other words, Revelation reveals how things really are. Things are not as they might seem to us.

We see this principle in Christ’s words to the church at Smyrna. He said to them, “I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” (Revelation 2:9, ESV) This is the theme that runs throughout the whole book. Jesus said to them, “I am not unaware of the fact that you are poor as it pertains to the things of this world, and I am not blind to the fact that you are persecuted. But here is the reality of things – you are really rich. And those who persecute you who claim to be the people of God (based upon their ethnicity) are really not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” Things may look one way on the surface, but things are not always as they appear. Revelation reveals how things really are.

The main message of the book is crystal clear, then. In verse one we are told that this revelation is from God and it was given to Christ to “to show to his servants [Christians] the things that must soon take place.” God’s objective is to show us something, and he is a good communicator, not a bad one. And “he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John” who wrote it down for our benefit. The word translated, “made it known” is σημαίνω which means “to cause something to be both specific and clear—‘to indicate clearly, to make clear.’” Add to this the repeated blessings that are pronounced upon those who “hear” the content of this book and “keep what is written in it”, clearly, the assumption is that the message of this book is going to be understandable and able to obeyed.

How different this is from how Christians today typically view the book. They see it as muddying the waters, not clarifying. But the book of Revelation is given to reveal. We should approach it, then, expecting a clear word, and one that can be obeyed.

Revelation is a Book to be Seen

Secondly, understand that Revelation is a book to be seen.

John “saw” the book of Revelation before he wrote it. Verse 2: John “bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw.” The verb “to see” appears 52 times in Revelation with John as it’s subject. John is constantly saying, “I saw this, and I saw that”.

And what did John see? He saw visions filled with symbols. It is right, then, that we interpret these visions symbolically unless there is something in the text which demands that we take them literally.

To interpret something symbolically is to recognize that a word or image is not to be taken literally, but is to be understood as representing some other reality in an out of the ordinary and vivid way.

Consider this. When Jesus taught us about the kingdom of heaven in Mathew 13 he said it was “like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field.” It is not difficult to understand that Jesus was teaching using metaphor and symbolism. In reality, the kingdom of heaven has nothing to do with mustard seeds. You are not doing kingdom work when you sow mustard seeds. But Christ used the image of a mustard seed to communicate something true about the kingdom of heaven. Though it be small now it will grow big and fill the earth, for example. That is the real truth communicated through the symbolism of the mustard seed.

The visions shown to John and recorded for us in the book of Revelation function in a similar way. They are not to be taken literally. To interpret Revelation literally whenever possible is to interpret the book wrongly. We are on the right path when we, first of all, understand that it is a piece of literature jam packed with symbols, and symbols must be interpreted according to certain rules.

How can I be so sure that much of Revelation is to be interpreted symbolically?

Well, for one, the opening verse says so.

In verse one we read,  “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John…” (Revelation 1:1, ESV)

A strong case can be made for the idea that the Greek word translated “made it known” in the ESV near the end of verse one carries within it the idea of “made it known by way of sign or symbol”. Dr. Beale effectively demonstrates this in his commentary.

It’s interesting that the KJV and the NKJV both translate the Greek using the English word “signify”.  Instead of saying that Jesus “made it known”, they say that he, “sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John…” (Revelation 1:1, NKJV) I think this is a more helpful English translation, for the word “signify” means to express an idea by way of sign or symbol, and that is how truth is consistently communicated in this book.

It is interesting that the Greek word behind “made it known” in the ESV, or “signified” in the KJV and NKJV is often used in the New Testament and in the Greek translation of the Old Testament to  communicate this very idea – something being made known by way of sign or symbol. For example the word appears in John 12:33 where, after Jesus says, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself”, John remarks saying, “This He said, signifying by what death He would die.” (John 12:33, NKJV) Jesus’ talk of being “lifted up from the earth” was to be taken symbolically to represent Jesus’ crucifixion, John says.

More importantly the Greek word translated “made it known” in Revelation 1:1 appears in a concentrated way in Daniel chapter 2 if we read from the LXX, which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old testament, and the Bible of the early church. It’s in Daniel 2 that Daniel interprets the strange dream that Nebuchadnezzar which we made reference to last week. Nebuchadnezzar saw a figure of a man in a dream – a large statue with a head of gold, a chest and arms of silver, thighs of bronze, and legs of iron mixed with clay. A stone was cut out, but not with human hands, and that stone was thrown against the image and it crumbled to pieces. The stone became a great and everlasting kingdom. Cleary this vision was to be interpreted symbolically. The image represented the succession of temporary earthly kingdoms, whereas the stone represented the Christ and the everlasting kingdom that he would establish. The Greek word translated “made it known” in Revelation 1:1 is all over that text suggesting that we ought interpret what John saw in a similar way to how Daniel interpreted what he saw, that is, symbolically, not literally. Both the visions of Daniel and the visions of Revelation signify the reality of things, but they are not to be taken literally

Two, the book of Revelation itself sometimes shows us how to interpret it’s visions.

Later in chapter one we encounter the first vision of the book where John sees “seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man…[holding] in his right hand … seven stars. (Revelation 1:112-13, 16, ESV) And by the end of the chapter we are told what to think of this vision. In verse 20 John is told, “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.” (Revelation 1:20, ESV)

So the first vision comes with and interpretive key. Isn’t that nice. It’s as if God wanted to help John and his readers out from the begging, saying,  “Here’s a vision. It’s to be interpreted symbolically. And it’s to be interpreted kind of like this…”

Why would we stray from this prescribed method of interoperation as we progress though the book. Why would we, like the futurists do, say, “well, let’s interpret it literally when ever possible”. Shouldn’t we say, “let’s follow the example embedded within the book of Revelation itself and interpret the book symbolically whenever possible”? That seems to me to be the better approach.

Three, to take the visions of the book of Revelation literally leads to absurdities and contradictions in the text.

Here is an example from Revelation 5 where we read of another vision. John says, “And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.” (Revelation 5:6, ESV) Clearly this vision is about Jesus. He is the lamb. But is this literally what Jesus looks like now? Does he now have the appearance of a lamb with seven horns and seven eyes? If he does, then we have a problem because in 1:13 John sees him as “one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and 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. In 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.” (Revelation 1:13–16, ESV) Another time he is called the “lion of the tribe of Judah.”

So which is it? He is a lion? Is he a lamb? Or is he one like the son of man, radiant in glory? If we insist upon a literal interpretation we end up in trouble. But when we accept what the book says about itself – that it was seen by John and that it is to be interpreted symbolically – there is no problem at all. In reality Jesus does not look like a lamb nor a lion not does he have a sword for a tongue – he looks like Jesus.

But these images, understood symbolically, tell us something about the Jesus we love and adore. He, in his lamb like meekness, as one the victor. He, with his seven eyes, sees everything with perfect clarity. He, with his seven horns, has all power. He, though lamb like, is also the fierce and powerful lion of the tribe of Judah. When he comes again he will slay his enemies with the word of his mouth.

Do you see how symbols work? They communicate truth in a vivid and colorful way. They communicate truth by way of comparison and through the painting of mental images.

Some will say, “well, if it is symbolic then there is no control. We can make the symbols mean whatever we want them to mean.” And there is some truth to this. If the strength of symbolism is in the vivid and colorful way in which the communicate truth, the weakness is in their obscurity. But we are not without help.

I’ve already shown you how the book of Revelation contains, within it’s own pages, examples of how we are to interpret it’s visions. So we have boundaries.

The rest of the New Testament also provides boundaries. We are not free to make the symbols of Revelation into anything we want them to be. No, we must interpret them in light of what the rest of New Testament clearly says. The rest of New Testament provides boundaries.

And the Old Testament also provides boundaries. In fact, we will see that it is primarily the Old Testament that serves as the interpretive key to the images found in the Revelation. We will encounter all kinds of things in the book of Revelation. We will see a harlots, a beast, a false prophets and a dragon. We will see the twelve tribes of Israel, and twenty-four thrones. We will hear see seals opened and we will hear the blasts of trumpets. We will witness plagues and battles which bring great destruction. In the end we will see a new creation. This one will have one significant tree in it – the tree of life. And we are told that there will be no sea, nor will their be need for a sun and moon, for the glory of God will illumine that place. All of these images come from somewhere. We do not meet these themes for the first time in the book of Revelation, but the are first encountered where? In the Old Testament scriptures.

Friends, we are not free to make whatever we want of the symbols contained within Revelation. The rest of the scriptures provide the boundaries. Some interpretations are clearly “out of bounds”. Correct interpretations will agree with the rest of God’s revealed truth.

Revelation is book to be seen, friends.

Numbers Count in Revelation

Thirdly, we must remember that numbers count in Revelation. By this I mean that numbers also have symbolic force to them.

I have in mind primarily the numbers four, seven, ten, and twelve. These numbers all in some way signify completion or perfection.

The number four is often associated with completion in a geographical sense. In 7:1 we are shown “four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree.” (Revelation 7:1, ESV) Here the number four is associated with geographical completion – the whole earth is in view.

The number seven is associated with perfection in this book.

Notice the greeting in 1:4: “John to the seven churches that are in Asia: 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 the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood.” (Revelation 1:4–5, ESV) Clearly this passage is Trinitarian .The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all mentioned. But the Spirit is described as the “the seven spirits who are before his throne”. Does God have seven Spirits? If so, then we are no longer Trinitarian. We would have to confess one God eternally existing in nine persons, Father, Son, and seven Spirits.  No, the number seven points to the idea of perfection.

Remember that the lamb had seven eyes and seven horns. Jesus sees all with perfect clarity and has perfect power. Seven seals will be opened in this book. Seven trumpets will be blown. Seven bowls will be poured out. Some try to argue for an overarching sevenfold structure to the book – I’m not sure. Seven signifies perfection.

The number ten is sometimes associated with a complete, but brief and limited, period of time. In Revelation 2 the church at Smyrna is warned that they will suffer persecution for “ten days”.

The number twelve is sometimes used to signify the totality of God’s people.

And then there are numbers that are in some way associated with these numbers.

The number six, for example, falls short of the number of perfection. It is the number, not of God, but of man. The number 666 is the number of man – the number of imperfection – displayed in a trinitarian form. The number of God would be 777. The mark of the beast is 666 – representing the false trinity.

The number twenty four is twelve times two. It is used to represent the totality of God’s people, Jew and Gentile.

The number 1,000 signifies a complete but long period of time. The church at Smyrna would suffer persecution for ten days – complete but brief – but Satan is bound from deceiving the nations for 1,000 years – 10x10x10 – a complete but very long period of time.

Let’s not forget the 144,000 of Revelation 14 who have been sealed by God. Who are they? Well, 144,000 is 12x12x1,000. The 144,000 represent all of God’s people who have lived and died in Christ throughout the church age who reign with him in heaven.

Many have stumbled over the numbers in the book of Revelation. The Jehovahs Witnesses insist that only 144,000 will reign with Christ in heaven in the end. Some pre-millenarians insist that Christ will reign on earth in the future for 1,000 years. Both make the same mistake – they insist upon a literal interpretation of the numbers in Revelation. But why would we do such a thing in book where numbers are consistently used symbolically.

Friends, numbers count in the book of Revelation.

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, I’m hoping that these introductory sermons free you to see the book of Revelation for what it is. It’s a clear book. It’s message comes to us by way of symbol. The things that John saw reveal truth by signifying it.

My hope is that it grows clear and that it begins to accomplish what it is was given to accomplish – to encourage you in the faith. Things are shown to us as they really are. God and his Christ have won the victory. They reign supreme. The see all, and they have all power. The world looks enticing, powerful, and wise, but things are not as they seem. In true and everlasting pleasure is found in God and in his Christ. They are supreme and worthy of all praise. They are infinitely wise. We would do well to bow before them. Though you may be poor, you are rich. Though you may be persecuted, you will prevail over your persecutors in the end. Though you may die, you really live.

Friends, the book of Revelation is about God and his Christ who has won the victory for us. That is what I want you to see – the glory of God and the supremacy of Christ. I want you to begin to see the world differently. My hope is that you will see it, not with your natural eyes, but with spiritual eyes as informed by God’s most holy word.

My prayer is that the book of Revelation would transform us. May we be convicted of sin, may our minds be enlightened, and may our wills be renewed. May we be persuaded to cling to our savior more closely than ever before, all to his glory, honor and praise.

New Testament Reading: Revelation 3:1-3

“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 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.” (Revelation 1:1–3, ESV)

Introduction

If you would have asked me five or six years ago if I had any desire to preach through the book of Revelation I would have said, “absolutely not!” I believed the book to be inspired by God. I knew that it was given to the church for good reason. I even knew that I should want preach through the it, for “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16–17, ESV) This certainly applies to the book of Revelation as much it is does to any other book of the Bible.

And it was not that I hadn’t studied it. I had. I’ve always been intrigued by this letter which brings the cannon of scripture to a conclusion and provides us with a glimpse into heavenly and eternal realities. The book is truly fascinating.

The problem was that I found it to be incredibly confusing. I would read it and study it but things would never quite click.

Also, I knew of far to many preachers who had made fools of themselves trying to tie particular portions of the book of Revelation (as well as Daniel and Ezekiel) to specific current events saying, “this prophesy is being fulfilled in this event; the return of Christ is imminent!”, only to be proven wrong. I call this the “crystal ball” approach to the book of Revelation. I began to wonder, when these men would learn? When would they see that their method of interpretation was consistently producing bad results? And more than that I began to wonder, when will the people who listen to them would learn? When would they see that the “Nostradamus” method of interpretation is flawed to the core? The “crystal ball” approach does sell books, though. And it does fill conference centers and churches. But really what ultimate gain is there in selling a million books when future generations read those books only to laugh at the false and absurd claims contained within them. I knew that I wanted no part of that.

The final reason that I had no desire to preach through the book of Revelation is that I could not see the real value of it for the church today. I knew that it must have value – it is indeed the word of God. But I could not see what it was. In my experience the book of Revelation (maybe with the exception of the first 3 chapters) had produced three things within the church. One, unbridled speculation. Two, confusion. And three, fear.

By “unbridled speculation” I mean the obsession with trying to tie specific portions of the book of Revelation to specific current events, saying “this must be the fulfillment of that!” The thought is that you are to read with Revelation (or Daniel or Ezekiel) in one hand and the newspaper in the other looking to current events as the specific fulfillment of specific prophesies.

We will see that Revelation does indeed have relevance for today and for tomorrow. It certainly applies. And I would agree that there is a connection between the things that happen in the world today and what is signified in the book of Revelation. I am not opposed to that idea. But it is troubling to see Christians grow obsessed with making specific speculations concerning the future. Over time I began to wonder if there was really any spiritual benefit to this obsession. What good does it do? Is it not a distraction from the real task at hand?

Also the obsession with predicting the future seemed to be in direct contradiction to the plain words of Christ. He himself said, “But concerning that day [that is, the last day] and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” (Matthew 24:36, ESV) “Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.” (Matthew 24:42, ESV) “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Matthew 24:44, ESV) The practice of making speculations concerning the specifics of the end times seem to me to run in direct contradiction to the clear teaching of Christ.

When I say that Revelation produces “confusion” in the people of God I mean that, although some pretend to have a handle on the book, it seems to me that they really do not. Their interpretations of it, when challenged, are found to be filled with gaps and inconsistencies. They certainly have a system of doctrine that they are committed to. They have lots of charts. But when pressed to exegete the text of scripture itself, there seems to be much confusion, fogginess, and uncertainly.

However, in my experience, most Christians don’t even pretend to have a handle on the book. Most will willingly admit that the book is utterly confusing to them, even to the point of being, in their minds, incomprehensible. How many Christians do you know who are like this? They love the Gospel of John. It feeds their soul. They love 1, 2, and 3 John. But when it comes to the fifth book written by John – that is, the book of Revelation – they throw their hands in the air and say, “forget it.” That is what I mean by “confusion”.

And when I mention “fear” I mean that the book of Revelation seems to keeps Christians up at night more than helping them to sleep well. It was a year or two ago that I had a conversation with a lady from another church. She shared with me that they were studying the book of Revelation at church, and so I asked, “what are you getting out of it?” Her only reply was that she hoped that she and her family would not be alive to experience the things described in the book. The book scared her. How sad. How backwards and upside down. One thing I knew about the book even then was that is was intended to strengthen, not scare – fortify, not frighten – the saints.

These three things combined – the confusion, the sad legacy of speculative “crystal ball” preaching, and the damaging, as apposed to edifying, effect that the book has upon Christians – made the thought of preaching through the book very unappealing to me.

But here we are beginning what will probably be a year long study through the book of Revelation. Something has obviously changed.

The thing that changed was my understanding of the book of Revelation. And I am not just referring to a change in my interpretation of a passage or two, but a significant shift in my view of the book as a whole.

To use technical terms, I used to be a futurist. That is what I was when the thought of preaching through Revelation was unappealing to me.

When I read the book of Revelation I assumed that it was almost all about events yet to happen in our future. I say “almost” because I recognized that the first three chapters of the book were indeed addressed to churches and to Christians that lived long ago. John the Apostle was to “Write what [he saw] in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.” (Revelation 1:11, ESV) It is in chapters one through three that those churches are specifically addressed. But as a futurist I believed that chapters four through twenty-two were filled with descriptions of events that are yet in our future.

Now I am, what some have called, an idealist (or a modified idealist).

I’ve come to see that the book of Revelation is not mainly about the future, but is rather mainly about the past, the present, and the future. There are certainly portions of the book that describe events that have not yet transpired. The second coming of Christ is, of course, in our future. The final judgment is yet future. The new heavens and new earth are something that we long to see in the future. But those future events are described periodically in the book of Revelation. They do not dominate the storyline. In fact the majority of the book is about the past, the present, and the future. What is described in chapters four through twenty-two is not confined to the brief period of time (some say seven years) immediately preceding the end, but rather describes the reality of things as they have been experienced by the people of God from the first coming of Christ up to this present day. In others words, the book of Revelation primarily describes how things will be in the “last days”.

Friends, please understand and do not miss this vital point. The entire time between Christ’s first coming and second coming are “the last days.” Listen to Hebrews 1:1-2, for example. “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” (Hebrews 1:1–2, ESV) The “last days” are not confined to a period of time yet future to us, but are also, from our vantage point, past, present, and future. This is why Paul wrote to Pastor Timothy warning him that “in the last days there will come times of difficulty.” (2 Timothy 3:1, ESV) Did Paul warn Timothy of this so that Timothy might be concerned for those who would minister 2,000 years or more after him? No, he warned Timothy because the man was himself ministering in the “last days” – days marked by difficulty for the people of God.

The days in which we live are without a doubt the “last days”, not because there are only a few days left – though that might be the case – who knows? These are certainly the “last days” because Christ’s first coming marked the beginning of the final period of human history as we know it. How long will this period be? That has not been revealed to us. What we do know is that the next event on the timeline of redemptive history is the return of Christ and the consummation of all things.

The book of Revelation is mainly about these “last days”, that is, the whole time between Christ’s first and second coming, which are the days in which we live. The references to events that are yet future to us – events that will transpire on the “last day” – only appear occasionally in the book.

These two ways of seeing the book of Revelation are drastically different. And these two ways of seeing the book will lead readers of the book to vastly different conclusions concerning the end times. The futurist approach typically produces (or accompanies) the pre-tribulational, pre-millennial view (here is where it would have been helpful for you to listen to the audio from the eschatology class that I taught some time ago. I cannot take the time to explain these terms at this time.) The idealist position typically produces (or accompanies) the Amillennial (or sometimes, post-millennial) view.

Friends, I hope you can see why it is important for us to talk about these interpretive issues before jumping with both feet into the study of the book of Revelation itself. I always devote a sermon to introductory issues at the beginning of a book study. It’s always important to talk about authorship, date, setting, and genre. It’s important for us to know what kind of book or letter we are handling before we begin to handle it. To attempt to interpret a book of the Bible without first asking, “who wrote this thing, when did they write it, to whom did they write, in what literary style did they write it, and why?” is dangerous. This is especially true of the book of Revelation given it’s uniqueness.

Revelation is indeed a challenging book to interpret given it’s constant use of symbolism. But the thing that makes the proper interpretation of the book of Revelation exceedingly difficult today is the fact that it, more than any other book of the Bible, has been twisted and distorted, used and abused, in a very dramatic and public way.

Friends, you do know that it is the futurist interpretation of the book of Revelation that rules the day. And it rules day, not only in the church, but also in the American culture at large. I am not saying that people know they are futurists. I didn’t think of myself as a futurist when I was one. Looking back I probably just thought of myself as a “biblicist”. I assumed I was just reading the Bible and interpreting it “naturally”. But I was naive. The truth of the mater is that I was reading the book of Revelation with lenses on. I see now that they were lenses that I had obtained from my church experience and from my exposure to popular culture.

“The Left Behind” series was (and maybe is) immensely popular amongst Christians. Before that it was a book called the “Late Great Planet Earth” by Hal Lindsey. Movies have been made. Christians line up in droves to watch this stuff, and they bring non-Christians too. Sadly, this is the only exposure that many Americans have to the Bible – their understanding of the Bible comes from Christian novels and movies.

Friends, please understand that these books and movies are based upon a futuristic interpretation of the book of Revelation. They are based upon the pre-tribulational, pre-millennial scheme. And I would argue that it is the popularity of these works that have made the futuristic, pre-tribulational , pre-millennial interpretation so popular within the church today. Do you want to advance a theological agenda? Write a novel! Do you want to promote your view of things and make it stick? Make a movie! I guess the next best thing after this would be to write a song. But I’m sure you understand that you can’t believe everything that you read in novel, see on the big screen, or here on Air 1. These are often times very poor sources for biblical theology.

Many of you have read these books and watched these movies. Those who have not are probably aware of them. I would suggest to you that we’ve been greatly effected by these popular works. I would suggest that we’ve been so effected that it is difficult for us to see the book of Revelation in any other way. I think we read Revelation with “Left Behind” lenses on, that is what I’m saying. We read with the pre-trib, pre-mil system already in mind. Often times, we didn’t even know we are doing it.

Friends, the first step on the road to recovery is recognizing you have a problem. Biblicists are hopelessly naive. A biblicist imagines that he or she is able to simply pick up the Bible are read it with perfect clarity. I do believe that the scriptures are clear, friends. We are indeed able to come to a clear understanding of the meaning of scripture. God is a good communicator – he gets his message across. But it is naive to assume that the scriptures are crystal clear in an immediate and automatic way. No, we, because of our limitations, must work to interpret scripture. And the first step in interpretation is to own up to the fact that you bring presuppositions to the table. You and I bring theological presuppositions, we bring a worldview to the text, we bring “baggage” with us. Sound interpretation is still possible. But the first step is to own up to the fact that you bring “baggage” with you to the task of interpretation. The biblicist – the one who imagines that he or she reads the Bible with a heart and mind as pure as the wind driven snow – is dangerously naive. The first step is to admit that you have presuppositions – preconceived notions about what the text will say. After that you must be willing to examine those presuppositions in the light of scripture itself to see if they hold up under intense scrutiny. Finally, if they do not hold up you must have the integrity and courage to say, “I was wrong” and to change your views to bring them into conformity with the teaching of scripture.

Church, that’s what I’m asking you do before we even begin to chew on the substance of the book of Revelation. I’m asking you to own your presuppositions. And I’m asking that you be willing to put them to the test. And if your current views are weighed and found wanting, I’m asking that you abandon them in favor of a view that is more faithful and true to text of Holy Scripture. Your view must fit the book of Revelation itself, and it also must align with other pertinent portions of God’s inspired, inerrant, clear, and authoritative word. If you constantly feel as if you’re trying to pound a square peg into a round hole, you might have a problem.

The Presuppositions of the Futurist

So what are the presuppositions that the futurist brings to the table when studying the book of Revelation? What assumptions do they make about the book?

The most obvious is this, they read Revelation assuming that what they will find is primarily a description of events yet to happen in our future.

The futurists are correct to recognize that chapters one through three of Revelation directly address churches that existed long ago. It is my belief that the book of Revelation was written by John somewhere around 90 A.D. Some insist that it was written prior to 70 A.D. The date is really of little importance here. The point for now is that the book of Revelation was addressed to seven churches that existed in the late first century A.D. These were real local churches in Asia Minor with real Christians in them. The futurists are right to recognize this.

Their assumption, though, is that chapter four begins to describe specific events that were not only in the future of the those to whom the letter was originally written, but are also in our future. Most, if not all, of Revelation four through twenty-two, has not happened yet. There is, according to the futurist, a radicle break – a huge gap of time – between chapters three and four of the book of Revelation. It is a gap of at least 1,926 years, for that is how much time has transpired from the writing of Revelation to this present day.

Therefore, chapters four through twenty-two meant very little to the Christians living in 90 A.D. who originally read John’s letter. They must of have been even more confused about the content of those chapters than we are. After all, we are at least 1,926 years closer to the events described in those chapters, if the futurists are indeed correct in their interpretation.

But does the book of Revelation allow for such a view? That is the question.

The futurists see 4:1 as the key to their interpretation. There John says, “After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, ‘Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.’” (Revelation 4:1, ESV) “After this” they say, refers to events yet in our future.

Friends, remember that these word were originally spoken to John in 90 A.D., not to us. And they were originally written to Christians living in 90 A.D., not to us. Indeed it is true, the book of Revelation describes things that would take place in the future, but from the perspective of John and the seven churches in Asia Minor, and not only ours. Notice that the text says, “after this”, not “a long, long time after this”.

In fact the evidence that Revelation itself produces points in the opposite direction. The majority of what is described in Revelation would happen soon from the perspective of the 90 A.D. audience. They would live it and experience it.

Look at 1:1. “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,” (Revelation 1:1, ESV) It is clear that the the things that John saw were to take place “soon”.

Look at 1:3. “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.” (Revelation 1:3, ESV) Do you see that the futurist’s main presupposition is seriously challenged from the very beginning of the book?

Some of them will say, “well those remarks about the ‘nearness’ of things only applies to the letters written to the churches in the first three chapters of the book.” First of all, that is not the natural reading of the text. And secondly, the view runs into real difficulty when we consider the end of the book the same emphasis. In 22:6 we read, “And he said to me, ‘These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.’” (Revelation 22:6, ESV) The emphasis upon the eminence or nearness of the events described is not confined to the first three chapters, but to the whole book.

Indeed, there are things communicated in the book that refer to events yet in our future – the second coming of Christ, the final judgment, and the new heavens and the new earth. But often when these events are described the narrative in some way communicates delay. Everything else, though, was to happen soon, according to John. And it was to happen soon from his vantage point, not ours.

Also consider the fact that blessings are pronounced upon those who read, hear, and keep the things contained within the book. Revelation is book to be obeyed. It’s not a “crystal ball” to help with our speculation. And those who obey it are blessed.

Hear again 1:3. “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.” (Revelation 1:3, ESV) And listen to the words of Christ in 22:7. “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” (Revelation 22:7, ESV)

Do these blessings only apply to the Christians who will happen to be alive in the future during the brief period of time immediately preceding the end? No, these blessing apply to all of the saints in 90 A.D., 1,000 A.D., and to this present day.

The futurist assumes that this is mainly a book about events yet in our future. But the book of Revelation will not allow itself to pressed into this mold.

The second presupposition is this: the futurist reads Revelation assuming that it is chronological from beginning to end.

They imagine that the order of the chapters correspond to the order of events in human history. The events described in chapter twenty, for example, will happen after the events described in chapter nineteen. And the events described in chapter twelve will happen after the events described in chapter eleven.

But this is impossible, friends. A clear feature of the book of Revelation is something called recapitulation. We will return to this idea next week so I won’t explain in detail here. For now, understand that the book of Revelation is not organized chronologically. Instead, it is organized thematically. The book tells the story of the “last days” from different perspectives over and over again. Each time different things are emphasized.

The best illustration that I’ve heard compares this to viewing a football game on the TV. There is one game, but that game is viewed on the television from different camera angles. One camera focuses on the broad perspective, another will zoom in upon the quarterback, and another will focus on the linemen. Add to this benefit of replay where the viewer is shown, sometimes in slow motion, things that have already happened.

Friends, there is repetition in Revelation. But it in not pure or flat repetition. The story of the “last days” is told again and again, but from a different vantage point, and with different “players” emphasized. Sometimes the camera angle is very broad. At other times the camera zooms in upon specific things.

The book is certainly not organized chronologically. For example chapter eleven describes the end, but in chapter twelve we are taken back to the birth of Christ. In a similar way chapter nineteen describes the end, but chapter twenty tales us back to the time of Christ.

These things we will consider in more detail next week and especially as we come to these passages in our study. For now see that the futurist’s assumption that the book is organized chronologically will not stand up under close scrutiny.

Thirdly, the futurists tend to assume that the book is to be interpreted “literally whenever possible”.

I will not say much here for the sake of time. We will return to this topic next week. For now I will simply say that it is strange to assume that apocalyptic, prophetic literature is to be interpreted literally. John saw visions. These visions were filled with symbolism. The symbolism certainly points to truths that are real and true. But we must first approach the symbols as symbols before moving to the task of interpreting what those symbols mean. The book is thoroughly symbolic. And the key to understanding the symbols contained within the book is clearly the Old Testament.

But the futurist assumes that the key to interpreting what John saw are future historical events. In their view John literally saw apache attack helicopters in his vision (or something like that). What he saw was like news footage of specific historical evens shown to him ahead of time. And John described what he saw in the best way he could. He obviously didn’t know what a helicopter was, and so he described them as having the “appearance [of] locusts… like horses prepared for battle: on their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces, their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth; they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails.” (Revelation 9:7–10, ESV)

According to the futurist John saw some literal, specific, historical and, of course, future event and then did his best to describe what he saw. Instead we should take the book of Revelation at its word. John was shown signs, not historical events ahead of time. And the key to understanding the significance of those signs is the Old Testament, not future historical events.

I had wanted to read Daniel chapter two to you at the beginning of this sermon, but I ran out of space. You will see that Daniel and Revelation are intimately connected. It’s in Daniel two that we read of the dream that king Nebuchadnezzar had that only Daniel was able to declare and interpret. And what was the dream? The king saw the figure of a man and,

“The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.” (Daniel 2:32–35, ESV)

Tell me, did Nebuchadnezzar see some literal, specific, historical, and future event as if it were news footage shown to him ahead of time? Of course not! An actual figure like the one he saw in his dream has never existed and never will. It was a dream! It was a vision! And it was to be interpreted symbolically, not literally. To interpret it literally would be to miss the point altogether. So too with the book of Revelation.

To interpret Revelation “literally whenever possible” as many of the futurists do is to interpret the book wrongly. It’s to miss the point entirely!

Conclusion

You’ve noticed that my tone has been unusually combative today. It will not be this way throughout the study. The reason for it is that I view the futuristic interpretation of Revelation as harmful in two way. On the one hand it leads the church to wrong ideas concerning the times in which we live and what to expect in the future. But on the other hand it also manages rob the church of a message that she desperately needs to hear.

May I conclude by summarizing the message of Revelation for you?

The book of Revelation communicates this: Jesus has won the victory. He sits upon his throne now. God is sovereign over the events of human history. Satan has been bound. The church will experience difficulty in these last days, but she will prevail. Though the world looks a certain way to us when we view it with our natural eyes, we must remember that things are not alway as they appear. The visions of the book of Revelation reveal how things really are. The true identity of the harlot, the false prophet, and the beast are revealed – their end is destruction – their path leads only to death. We would be fools, therefore, to abandon Christ to chase after the seductiveness of this world, or to pursue the false religion of this world, or to escape persecution from worldly powers. It is that ancient serpent who empowers them all, and he has been defeated, bound, and will finally be destroyed. Believe upon Christ, and remain true to him, friends, even in the face of death. For to die is to live with Christ. “Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.” (Revelation 13:10, ESV) “Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.” (Revelation 14:12, ESV) Walk with Christ till the end, friends! Forsake the world, the flesh, and the devil, for things are not always as they appear. The lamb has won the victory. He was slain for you and me and for all who believe upon him. He is the lion of the tribe of Judah and he is “‘coming soon, bringing [his] recompense with [him], to repay each one for what he has done. [He is] the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.’ Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.” (Revelation 22:12–14, ESV)

This is the message that the church in every age needs to hear. May the Lord bless our study of this book.