Revelation: Introduction
Revelation • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 7 viewsNotes
Transcript
Good evening everyone! I want to take tonight and use it as an introductory lesson to the Book of Revelation. My hope is to lay a foundation for the Book by providing some historical context to it, so that we are prepared to dig in deep as we go through it.
First, I want to say this: At any point, if you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to ask. I can not promise that I will have an answer, but maybe amongst the group, we can put our heads to gether to come up with something. I will also be writing down any questions that I need to go do research on, so that I can come back the following week....hopefully with some form of an answer.
Secondly, if I use a word that you do not understand, please stop me and ask what that word means. I want to make sure that as we move through this Book, everyone is on the same page. There are a lot of theological terms to explain various things throughout this Book, so if you don’t understand one of those, please stop me so we can clear that up.
Thirdly, I encourage each of you to share your thoughts. Don’t be afraid to share what you think, or what you have always understood to be a certain way. I think we can all agree, that what understanding we have of this Book is severely limited at best. That is to say that I don’t think anyone can be overly dogmatic about much of the content written in this Book. There are some things that I would argue are pretty clear, but much of what we will cover will be purely speculative. We will be making our best effort to offer an educated guess to much of the material, simply because much of the material is mysterious in nature. So do not feel as if you have nothing to offer. If you have a question, chances are someone else also has that same question, so do not be afraid to ask it. It will actually help everyone if you do.
The Book of Revelation is important because it is the last inspired book of the Bible to be written. It is also rightly positioned as the New Testament’s final book. As the New Testament opens with the four Gospels relating to the first coming of Christ, so the Book of Revelation closes the New Testament with the general theme of the second coming of Christ. The Book of Revelation also serves as the climax of many lines of revelation running through both Testaments, and it brings to conclusion the revelation of many prophecies yet to be fulfilled.
The second coming of Christ and the years immediately preceding it are revealed in Revelation more graphically than in any other book of the Bible. The Book of Daniel describes in detail the period from Daniel’s time to Christ’s first coming and speaks briefly of the Tribulation and Christ’s rule on earth. But the Book of Revelation amplifies the great end-time events with many additional details, culminating in the new heaven and the new earth.
Now I want to explain a few of the traditional views that have been held over the years concerning the Book of Revelation.
Rapture of the Church
Tribulation (Revelation 6-18)(Two parts: Tribulation & The Great Tribulation [Each lasts for 3 1/2 years])
The tribulation period is a period of sever years. This seven year window comes from the interpretation of Daniel’s prophecy in Daniel 9.
24 “Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy.
25 “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.
26 “And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.”
When Daniel refers to a week, this is not a week of seven days, but rather a week of seven years. So each week represents a seven year period. At the very beginning of verse 24, we see that the entire prophecy consists of 70 weeks, or 490 years. We can see from verse 25 that from the time of Daniel to the time of Christ, 69 out of the 70 weeks will have transpired, which is a total of 483 years. This means that there is still one 7-year period that has not been accomplished.
It is during this seven year window that we see Daniel refer to the “prince who is to come” (vs. 26). This is Satan. He will destroy Jerusalem once again, desecrating the sanctuary, and evil will rule until the “end of the war”.
Then he says that this prince will “confirm a covenant with many for one week”. This is the last 7-year period of time prophesied by Daniel. This 7-year period has come to be known as the tribulation period. But within this seven year period of time there is a separation. Notice that it says in vs. 27, “But in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate.”
This is referring to the Antichrist. At the beginning of the tribulation period, the antichrist is going to make peace with Israel. He will have powers to perform miracles and many will believe that he is the prophesied Messiah. Remember that Israel rejected Jesus and that they are still waiting on the prophesied Messiah of the OT. They will believe that the Antichrist is him. He will make peace with them. He will restore the temple in Jerusalem, he will reinstitute their sacrificial system, and everything will go well for roughly 3 1/2 years. But during the middle of the week, he will cut them off. He will put a halt to the sacrifices and offerings made at the temple and he will offer up an abomination of desolation. Many speculate as to what this will be, but regardless, whatever it is, it will open the eyes of the Jews so that they will realize in that moment that he is indeed not the prophesied Messiah and that Jesus was actually the One, whom they crucified and hung on the cross and rejected all these many years.
5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
It is at that time when things will go south quickly. Therefore the last 3 1/2 years are known as “The Great Tribulation Period”, for they will be absolutely horrible. The beast, or the Antichrist, will be revealed during this time, the wrath of God will be greatly intensified, and the worst of God’s wrath will be poured out upon all those who are left upon the earth.
21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.
1 “At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book.
7 Alas! For that day is great, So that none is like it; And it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, But he shall be saved out of it.
Any questions so far????
Pre-Tribulation Rapture
Christ will return for the Church before the events of the Tribulation and Rapture them out.
The church is mentioned numerous times throughout the first three chapters of Revelation, but the Church is not mentioned again until Chapter 19 (I Believe it is).
13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
The word rapture comes from vs. 17 of this passage. When it says we “shall be caught up”, that Greek word is harpazo, which means “to snatch away” or “to seize”. Rapturo is the Latin translation of this word.
The idea is that Christ will come and “snatch us up” or “call us out” so that we do not have to go through the tribulation period.
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 describes “The Day of the Lord” in which God will pour out His wrath upon all those who have not believed in Him. This happens (according to the chronological order written here in 1 Thess.) after the rapture takes place.
Noah found grace and was given a way out.
Lot lived in the corrupt city of Sodom & Gomorrah but was called out before God destroyed it.
Mid-Tribulation Rapture
Some believe that the saints will remain on earth through the first 3 1/2 years of the tribulation period, but will be called out before the Great Tribulation starts.
They see a scroll with seven seals and the little scroll introduced in Revelation 10:1 as the separation of the two great periods of the tribulation. 3 1/2 years each.
They think that though the church will not suffer through the great tribulation, it will experience the signs leading up to it, which they believe are the things that take place in the first 3 1/2 years.
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
These verses seem to imply that the coming of the Lord will be after the last trumpet, which does fit with the mid-tribulation timeframe of Revelation.
Post-Tribulation Rapture
Those who believe that there is no secret rapture of the church, but that the rapture will take place at the same time Christ comes to set things right on earth, after the tribulation period has run its course and all has been made right.
They see no evidence of a “secret rapture” and they claim there are no prophecies in the OT that speak of it.
They view Matthew 24-25, commonly known as the Olivet Discourse (or the Eschatological Discourse) as being chronological, in which Jesus speaks of His second coming at the end of the tribulation period.
They view Rev 20:5 as proof that the “rest of the dead” will remain asleep until Christ has secured the heavenly kingdom of earth and death and hell have been abolished forever.
45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Millennial Reign of Christ (Revelation 20:4-5)
Pre-millennial Rapture
Jesus will return for the church before the 1,000 year millennial reign so that all of those who are children of God can live and dwell with Him on earth during this time.
Pre-millennialists will either fall into a Pre-Tribulational or a Mid-Tribulational belief of the rapture.
Post-millennial Rapture
Jesus will come after the Tribulation, bind Satan for 1,000 years, and reign from the throne of David. During this time, those who have died and gone on before will remain dead until after the His millennial reign is complete and the Battle of Armageddon has transpired.
Post-Millennialists will naturally hold to a Post-Tribulational viewpoint of the Rapture.
Interpretative Style
Idealist
The idealist view teaches that Revelation describes in symbolic language the battle throughout the ages between good and evil, God and Satan.
The idealist believes that apocalyptic literature such as Revelation should be interpreted allegorically, not literally. In other words, everything is just signs and symbols of something else, but is not to be taken literal.
Preterist
The preterist view teaches that the events recorded int he book of Revelation were largely fulfilled in 70 A.D. with the fall of the Jerusalem Temple.
The preterist and historicist views are similar in some ways to the idealist view, in that they feel most of the teaching of Revelation is to be taken symbolically. They differ in that they believe the events are real events, but that these events have largely already been played out throughout the history of the church.
There are two groups of preterists: full preterists and partial preterists
Both groups believe that the events of Revelation were played out during the first century of the church. Full preterists believe that all prophesies of Revelation have been fulfilled and we are now living in the eternal state of heaven on earth. Partial preterists believe that most of the prophesies in Revelation were fulfilled during the first century church but that Chapters 20-22 are still yet to be accomplished, which is the millennial reign of Christ, the Great white throne judgment, the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven, etc.
Historicist
The historicist view teaches that the book of Revelation is a symbolic presentation of church history beginning in the first century A.D. through the end of the age. The prophecies of Revelation are fulfilled in various historic events such as the fall of the Roman Empire, the Protestant Reformation, the French Revolution, etc.
This historicist view teaches that much of Revelation has also been fulfilled, but instead of being fulfilled during the first century of the church, it has been accomplished throughout the age during several different events. They believe that much has already been accomplished, but that the final chapters of Revelation have yet to be fulfilled.
Futurist
The futurist view reaches that Revelation prophesies of events that will take place in the future. These events include the rapture of the church, seven years of tribulation, and a millennial reign of Christ upon the earth.
The futurist view believes Revelation should be interpreted literally. In other words, the events of Revelation are to occur at a future time.
Literal 7-year tribulation
Literal 1,000 year millennial reign of Christ.
19 Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this.
Past (Ch. 1)
Present (Ch. 2-3)
Future (Ch. 4-22)
