This orientation wrongly downplays the role of the church in other parts of the world. Idealism also tends to recognize the general New Testament pattern of inaugurated eschatology that we discussed earlier in this series. Try to keep the class average as high as possible as a motivation to students. According to Revelation 16:16, a decisive battle between the kings of the east and God’s people would be fought at Armageddon or the Mount of Megiddo. Grab our free “Introduction to Revelation” lessons here. Far from promising protection from all suffering, John said the church in Smyrna was “about to suffer.” But at the same time, he assured them that if they remained faithful to Christ, Jesus would give them “the crown of life.” Their suffering and possible death would only be temporary, but their blessings would last forever. This encouragement was important because it oriented John’s original audience to the visions that followed. This can give Christians a false sense of where they are in redemptive history, sometimes inclining them to inappropriate pessimism, and sometimes to inappropriate optimism. I know the slander … God did this in the past in the Garden of Eden, in the tabernacle, and in the temple. In this section, John saw an angel descend from heaven and bind the great dragon, who is Satan. I’m not sure that they really understood it, but it was evident and clear that God was placing them in a position, in a state, where they could receive visionary revelation quite out of the ordinary and that they could then bring that word to us through inscripturating, putting it down in the Bible in the words that the Spirit gave them to describe these visions and these experiences. John saw the vision on the ___________ ___________ when he was in the ______________. The English word revelation is an attempt to translate the Greek word apokalypsus. View fullsize. Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation contain seven letters Jesus dictated to John, one to each of the seven churches. And we see these sort of disputes break out like at Galatia, over whether or not these Gentiles are to keep the Law. This view understands Revelation 20 to follow chronologically after chapter 19. Christ is with us. But those who treat these things like a joke will face the future judgment. View fullsize. The silence created dramatic tension for those who first read John’s visions. They help us focus on God’s character, and on the nature of his dealings with the world. The messages encourage Christ’s followers by proclaiming that the Lord will destroy all his enemies, and that the wicked will mourn the loss of their sinful enjoyments. Besides the multitude of smaller similarities we can find between ourselves and John’s original audience, there are at least three prominent similarities that can help guide our application. For example, John’s visions refer to what we would call the final judgment three different times. They’re trumpets that sound when God comes with his angelic armies, calling the heavenly host to war against God’s enemies. But while the visions of the seals and trumpets focused on divine judgments, the seven histories portrayed the spiritual conflict between Satan and the people of God. Structurally, the vision of the seven symbolic histories mirrors the visions of the seals and trumpets: the first six histories are grouped together, followed by an interlude, and then the seventh symbolic history. And they would have drawn hope and confidence from the fact that they would eventually be vindicated and blessed. But when he turned to look, what appeared was much greater than what had been announced. Some interpreters believe that these series should be read chronologically, as if they portrayed consecutive stages of history. And it’s a victorious symbol, it’s a very mighty symbol, that of the lion. And he still deserves our loyalty, thanks and praise. Like historic premillennialism, this view understands Revelation 20 to follow chronologically after chapter 19. Lesson 1 Introduction Revelation 1:1­3 1. The Title of the Book - The Revelation of Jesus Christ 1. Take a peek…. It teaches that the millennium consists of Jesus’ reign over the earth, from his throne in heaven and through his church; and that Jesus will return at the end of the millennium. We agree with preterism that the prophecies of Revelation were relevant to the seven churches of Asia Minor that first received the book. “The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show His servants what must soon take place. God protected her so that the dragon couldn’t defeat her, but she still suffered because of the conflict. Well, we might look to the Passover lamb in the Old Testament that is slain for the people and for forgiveness of sins. And Christ warned that he would discipline the church if they didn’t repent. To the Church in Smyrna. The first symbolic character is a pregnant woman clothed in the sun. Lesson … To everyone who is victorious I will give fruit from the tree of life in the paradise of God.” Revelation 2:2-7. The vision of the seven bowls presents seven angels that pour out seven golden bowls of God’s wrath against the wicked. And so John has taken these two images in creating for us a multi-perspectival image on who Jesus is. The second part of the vision of the seven seals is the opening of the seals themselves in Revelation 6:1–8:1. This bowl plunged the beast’s kingdom into darkness, but its followers still cursed God and refused to repent. The series of seven bowls completed John’s vision of coming events. And we see that in Revelation 5 where he has seven horns. The sixth message in this series is recorded in Revelation in 19:1-8, and contains the exuberant praise of God’s people in heaven. Accordingly, the strategy of preterism says that most of the prophecies in the book of Revelation were fulfilled in the distant past. For another, there appear to be a number of unique historical events in these visions that are mentioned in one or more series. Old Testament prophets frequently used this technique, describing the same series of events in different passages. The Book of Revelation is probably the clearest example of this technique. But in this context of a heavenly vision, it’s more likely that these were actual angels that Christ assigned to each local congregation. It’s important to see that the vision of seven trumpets is structured in a similarly to the vision of the seven seals. John also wrote that the beast had a horrible scar from a prior wound that should have been fatal. And voices from heaven proclaimed that those who remained faithful would ultimately receive God’s blessing and rest. Grab our free “Introduction to Revelation” lessons here. Well, something similar happened here. Three things stick out to me in this passage. In John’s vision, the first angel proclaimed the eternal gospel, calling all people to fear God and worship him. And they’re burned in the lake of fire in chapters 19–21. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Futurism also rightly looks for a future day of final judgment, and the eventual restoration of all creation that is confirmed in other parts of Scripture, such as Romans 8:19-25. The seventh trumpet introduces the worship that will take place in God’s throne room when his victory over all the kingdoms of earth is secure and when he renders his final judgment on all creation. Here, John alluded to the seven manifestations of the Spirit and seven stars in Jesus’ hand to remind the church at Sardis that Jesus had all power and authority. Paul talks in 2 Corinthians 12 about being caught up to the third heaven, and whether it was in the body or out of the body, he wasn’t sure. You will recall that he referred to the Book of James as a right straw-y epistle. When the first trumpet was sounded, hail and fire mixed with blood was hurled on dry land. A second problem with historicism is its dependence on the Protestant Reformation as a key point in the history of Christ’s worldwide church. This is the second lesson in our series on The Book of Revelation, and we have titled it “Structure and Content.” In this lesson, we’ll explore John’s book by considering its literary composition and how its various parts fit together. The New Jerusalem is described in Revelation 21:9-27. Now think about this, where is Christ in relation to the golden candlesticks? Every generation has believed that the thoughts contained in the book of Revelation pointed to ˝signs ˇ in their day and thus signaled the end of the world. Prayer thanking God that He cares for His people and asking His guidance and protection on those in the class. Report abuse. So, it can help to have a responsible strategy for making these connections. And John also reminded his readers that the consummation of God’s kingdom and the final judgment are still in the future. The background is actually in the prophecy of Ezekiel in the Old Testament where at a couple of points Ezekiel speaks of the Spirit taking him to a place and showing him things that he would not otherwise be able to see. View fullsize. Fifth, there is a mixture of offers of blessing and threats of curse appropriate to Christ’s evaluation of the church. Read 648 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Revelation promises a blessing to those who read and heed what it says, which means that the book is meant to be understood and … 6-a) Satan, b) Rome (Empire), c) Cult of Emperor Worship No. At the same time, they would have understood their need to persevere, since the struggles wouldn’t end any time soon. This apocalyptic book is one of the most important messages concerning the future, yet one of the least read books of the Bible and often the least understood. That is, we understand that these letters were written to a specific … Now the others, Ephesus and Pergamum and Thyatira and Sardis receive praise, but also condemnation. It correctly says that Revelation looks forward, above all, to the great events of Jesus Christ’s return. And so John hears about this Lion from the Tribe of Judah who has overcome. In his fourth vision, John was lifted onto a high mountain. Jeremy Ballinger. We’ll begin our exploration of the structure and content of Revelation by looking briefly at John’s purpose for writing. Preterism insists that statements like these don’t refer to the whole period of time between the first and second comings of Christ — even though that time lies “just before” the final judgment. And this hope can sustain us, because we know that one day Christ will return to bless us as the heirs and rulers of his perfect, permanent new creation. Home › The book of Revelation › The book of Revelation – Lesson 2, By Theology School on January 30, 2021 • ( 0 ). Now that we’ve explored the vision of Christ, let’s turn to John’s vision of coming events, recorded in Revelation 4:1–16:21. Even so, whenever we suffer, we have the consolation that God is present with us, and that he sovereignly rules over our situation. The threat of being spit out of Christ’s mouth vividly warned that flagrant rebellion against Jesus would lead to divine curses. Give the answers to the quiz as a review of last week's lesson. Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. Someone read from the letter to the church in Philadelphia-3:8. It buoys us up further by the sense of assured inevitability of the outcome for which we labor now, in which, in the natural might be a little shaky or uncertain from our limited perspective. He intended it to encourage every believer in every age to live in faithful obedience to him, and to hope in the glorious return of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I surrender all that I am to you. Philadelphia: Church Faithful (3:7-13) As He did to the other churches, Christ said to Philadelphia, … Hand out the seven cards with scripture readings indicated and tell the students you will call on them to read toward the end of class. And we can draw hope from the knowledge that one day the curse of sin will be eradicated from this world, and God will dwell with his people in perfect peace and righteousness. As their king, Jesus gave a mixed evaluation of the church in Ephesus. Having surveyed John’s vision of the punishment of the prostitute, let’s move to his vision of the wife of the Lamb. Look over chapters 4 through 11 of Revelation for the next class. For the next key to understanding Revelation we need to look at what the book of Revelation says will be happening to the church during this "soon to come" time period. Before we start studying about what the Book of Revelation means, let's take a quick look at the five most common views taken by various teachers and writers on the book. Let’s look first at the four common strategies for applying Revelation. Based on the fact that God’s name is sealed on their foreheads, they appear to be the same group mentioned in Revelation 7:1-8. We can be confident in his love for us and his control over history. Jesus followed his commendation with a rebuke: the church had failed to reject the Nicolaitans, as well as teachings that were associated with Balaam. This vision was designed to encourage John’s original audience to remain faithful throughout their struggles against sin and Satan, because God’s future victory was certain. But the rest of humanity was condemned for their sins. This description was designed to make the Laodicean believers pay attention, because their evaluation would be very negative. Our discussion of the modern application of Revelation will divide into two parts. But the scroll also turned his stomach sour, probably indicating that suffering would attend the consummation of God’s plans. Now that we’ve explored the seven seals, let’s turn our attention to the second series of visions regarding coming events: the seven trumpets in Revelation 8:2–11:19. Now that we’ve surveyed the seven seals, the seven trumpets and the seven symbolic histories, let’s turn to the fourth series of visions about coming events: the seven bowls of God’s wrath in Revelation 15 and 16. The Book of Revelation 2:1-7. And we began to see Gentiles responding. And it emphasizes the application of Revelation to our modern situation by generalizing beyond the particular circumstances of the first century and the final crisis. Post a picture of Christ as He appears in Revelation 1 or use the PowerPoint picture. Martin Luther didn't think much of the Book of Revelation, just as he did not think much of the Book of James. Have cards or slips of paper with one of the following scriptures on each: Rev. When the first seal was opened, a rider on a white horse brought conquest to the nations. No. Have copies of Test 1 ready for students as they enter class. We can also focus on the idea that Christ’s complete victory over evil is certain, and that his kingdom will never end. This appearance showed that Jesus was majestic, glorious, and powerful. The heavenly vision continued in Revelation 5:1-14. An earthquake shattered the cities of the nations. The second part of the interlude records John’s vision of two witnesses who died for the sake of the gospel. (v. 17)  He was walking among seven __________________. Similarly, preterism is too narrow in its interpretation of temporal statements like “the time is near” in Revelation 1:1-3, and again at the end of Revelation in 22:10. Join the Read Revelation Challenge. The word “preterite” refers to things that happened in the past. Which one of these three statements do you connect most with today? Jesus asked John to write down what he saw and ____________ it to seven ____________________. In this lesson, we’ve examined the purpose of the book of Revelation in terms of its offers of blessings and threats of curses; we’ve surveyed the details of its content; and we’ve considered its modern application by looking at some common strategies, and a more integrated strategy for application. Revelation 2020 - Lesson 3 10.02.2019. [Dr. Carl R. Trueman], I think even though we’re removed now by two millennia from the world of the book of Revelation and its initial writing there really are some similarities between the Roman Empire of that day and this present era, among them the fact that in both cases there is life going on in a very, very diverse population, there are internal stresses and amazing polarities between the very rich and the very poor, the privileged, the less so, the marginalized. God’s glory is revealed. They could only wreak havoc on the earth for five months, and they were only permitted to attack the wicked. You can do this and keep all grades totally anonymous because the students do not have to put their names on the test papers when they turn them in to be recorded. The book of Revelation is the last book in the Bible. For this reason, it seems best to read each series of visions as a distinct description of the entire history of God’s kingdom prior to Christ’s return. The student can cite at least three lessons we should learn from the letters to the seven churches. According to Revelation 21:9, this vision concerned the bride, the wife of the Lamb, which was the New Jerusalem. In every circumstance — even martyrdom — we’re obtaining victory over evil and death through the power of Christ. John described these locusts as horses prepared for battle, having crowns of gold, human faces, women’s hair, lions’ teeth, and tails like scorpions. The second angel announced the Fall of Babylon the Great, the capital city of those who oppose the kingdom of Jesus Christ. Now that we’ve examined John’s first and second visions, let’s turn to his vision of the punishment of the great prostitute in Revelation 17:1–21:8. But for those who remained faithful to him, Christ promised purity, vindication, and reward. सात कलीसियाओं को लिखे गए … 2:26-28; Rev. And they were all living under that threat of losing their lives for the gospel. I’d love to heart it! Moreover, preterism doesn’t normally acknowledge that this timeline might be modified by historical contingencies. Another form suggests that these visions were fulfilled in the Fall of the Roman Empire in the fifth century A.D. Preterism provides a helpful focus on John’s original audience. (Read Revelation 1:1-2.) At the very outset of this prophecy the spotlight falls upon our Lord, calling the reader’s attention to the majesty and the glory of our Lord, for this book is a “Revelation of Jesus Christ” (verse 1). And as a result, we can all find great comfort and encouragement in the Bible’s teaching about the millennium. There are a number of clues in the visions themselves that strongly suggest that John was describing the same sequence of events from different perspectives. Once cast to earth, Satan pursued the woman to persecute her. Believers will receive resurrected bodies at the beginning of the millennium. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. It’s almost as though our zeal is the fuel in the tank of our car, and the doctrines are the steering wheel. But their power was limited. And then later on in the Apostles’ Creed it says we believe in “the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body.” Now this is an element of ecumenical orthodox Christianity that many Christians don’t even understand anymore, that we believe that there is going to be a general physical resurrection of the body. In the study of any book of the Bible or any topic of Scripture, a certain amount of ground work is needed for understanding, orientation, and motivation. New to our site? Tujuan (1:50) It’s an experience that I think we don’t fully understand. It showed that history is moving toward a grand climax, where those who are faithful to Jesus will be vindicated, but those who aren’t will be destroyed. And the Book of Revelation will complete the revelation of … Each differs in how it interprets the period of time the book of Revelation covers, and the manner in which its visions are fulfilled. We want to be careful not to dichotomize what is the holistic reality of God’s character. This interlude describes the church in ways that highlight God’s protection of his people. All the letters promise great rewards to those who _________________. At the end of this section, though, an eagle warned that even worse judgments were coming. Like John’s visions of the seals, trumpets, histories and bowls, his visions dealing with the judgment of Babylon also recapitulate church history. In line with his role as God’s prophet, John’s purpose was expressed in two complementary messages from Jesus to the churches of Asia Minor. [Dr. Craig S. Keener]. Revelation promises a blessing to those who read and heed what it says, which means that the book is meant to be understood and that it can be understood. 3-symbolically No. And second, he conveyed threats of curses against all who were disloyal. And it’s clear from the actions and context of Revelation 14 that this son of man is also Christ. (While you are at Amazon, you may want to try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial and get free 2-day shipping on most items plus other benefits.) No. Then a second reaper — this one an angel — harvested the remaining inhabitants of the world and crushed out their blood in the winepress of God’s wrath. Its messages are timeless, always relevant, and just as powerful for us as they were for the seven churches in Asia Minor. This is not a picture that is to be drawn or taken literally. [Dr. K. Erik Thoennes]. In Revelation 3:8, he gave them this assurance: I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. This description emphasized the light of Christ’s glory and power. The fifth trumpet blast is recorded in Revelation 9:1-12. One day humans will be held accountable and have no excuse before God. For this reason, our lesson will adopt an interpretive perspective that has sometimes been called “recapitulation.”. When the fifth seal was opened, John saw a vision of Christian martyrs in heaven. Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God… [I]f you do not wake up, I will come like a thief (Revelation 3:1-3). Historic premillennialism and dispensational premillennialism are both premillennial systems, meaning that they believe Jesus will return before the millennium starts. The third seal produced a rider on a black horse that represented famine. We’ll explore each major section of the book of Revelation, beginning with the introduction in Revelation 1:1-8. Let’s look at each of these systems in a bit more detail. Revelation 2-3 . As low as $30/day. So anyone who has this hope in him purifies himself as he is pure.” If the goal of God’s redemption is to transform us into the image of Jesus Christ, if the goal of God’s redemption in our lives is to bring us into a perfect union with him, a perfect relationship of loving trust and obedience, if the goal of God’s redemption is to fill us with his love and his Spirit so that forever we are not just enjoying heaven, but forever heaven is living in us, then our response now can be only one thing: Lord make me as much like Jesus in this life as a human being can possibly be. It may be that the order of the seven churches in these two … These insights increase our ability to read and to use Revelation as John intended. 4 The Book of Revelation Lesson 2: Structure and Content © 2013 by Third Millennium Ministries www.thirdmill.org Notes I. Jesus’ letter to the church in Philadelphia appears in Revelation 3:7-13. The word carries two senses with it: first, it speaks of a catastrophic or destructive ending. It released four angels from the Euphrates River, who proceeded to destroy a third of humanity. Each strategy examines the symbols in Revelation and decodes them according to its own perspective. From the vision series of the symbolic histories, John’s original readers should have been reminded that Christ had already defeated Satan on the cross. And as Christ’s prophet, John was an authoritative ambassador that relayed Jesus’ message to his churches. Call the roll, welcome visitors, and make any necessary announcements. But despite these valuable insights, preterism doesn’t provide a complete perspective on Revelation. It dissipates and defeats the purpose of the book. As a result, it tends to ignore distant future fulfillments and to look for fulfillments only in the context of the original audience. In Revelation 17:1-6, the city of Babylon is presented as a prostitute. But in the new heavens and new earth, our fellowship with God will be even greater, because he’ll manifest his glory among us, and we’ll live in his physical presence forever. The dragon attacked the woman and her child, highlighting the intense struggle between Satan and God’s people. Despite intense persecution, faithful believers will be found pure and blameless. And that reminds us that what the promises of blessing are intending to do in part for us as God’s people is to encourage us to persevere during times of trial and persecution, persevere in terms of clinging to Jesus and always aligning ourselves with his purposes, but also being very careful to live out the lifestyle of those who are known by the name of the Lord so that we are a holy people unto the Lord. More are in development. Although this 144,000 has been understood in different ways, the text of Revelation says that John heard an announcement of 144,000, but when he turned and looked, he saw something quite different. One might touch its ear and believe the elephant is like a hand fan. And to confirm this fact, she holds a cup filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. But instead of a grand, climactic ending, there was simply silence. Our class on Revelation provides a detailed verse-by-verse treatment of that beautiful book in 25 lessons with audio. And this should encourage every Christian in every age to remain faithful to Christ, even when we face severe opposition and oppression. विवरण 5. And giant hailstones crushed humanity. The four large visions in the body of Revelation are each introduced with a statement that John was “in the Spirit.” John consistently used this language to mark the beginning of new divisions in the main body of his book. But idealism also has shortcomings. We are examining the letters from a historical, universal and prophetic point of view . In this letter, John introduced Christ as the one who “has the sharp, double-edged sword.” Jesus’ words are razor-sharp, able to judge between right and wrong. Is Revelation all about Heaven and the end of the world as so many believe? One might touch its tail and think the elephant is like a rope. श्रापों की चेतावनियाँ 3. The Book of Revelation is the only book in the Bible that contains a special blessing to those who read, hear and do. Someone read from the letter to the church in Laodicea-3:14-20. Regardless of our perspective on the timings and fulfillments of John’s visions, all Christians should agree that the book of Revelation is as relevant today as it was when John wrote it. Dr. Stephen Tong, translation]. Here’s where to start. 4-soonNo. The final battle concludes all the wars God has waged on behalf of his people, and completes the victory Christ won on the cross. [Dr. Matt Friedeman], It’s important for us to reflect on the question of why our zeal and love for Jesus Christ needs to be combined with, shall we say, sound, biblically grounded doctrine. From the church in Ephesus we learn than Jesus _________________ us very well and He likes it when we take a __________________ against those who do not teach the truth. The city of Sardis had a reputation as a strong fortress, but on two occasions it had been captured by surprise. The letter to the church at Smyrna appears in Revelation 2:8-11. )Someone read from the letter to the church at Ephesus-2:1-3. Despite the problems the Jews in Smyrna created for the church, Jesus exhorted his followers to faithfulness, and encouraged them to trust him because he had overcome death. But its main ideas are still fairly clear. I think Revelation 2 and 3 are absolutely key to the letter of the book of Revelation because they give us in many ways the application points for the church, the characteristics that the churches are asked to manifest. The vision of the seven seals consists of two main parts, beginning with a description of God’s heavenly throne room in Revelation 4 and 5. The entire world will be fully renewed and healed from all the conflicts with sin that have plagued fallen human throughout our history.