Revelation Sermon - 41

Revelation: Review, Remind, Recap

Revelation 1:1-17:6

1. Introduction – With the exception of the 4 Sundays of Advent, last year, if I preached, it was from the amazing book of Revelation.

a. With church anniversaries, holidays and other special occasions, I preached 40 sermons on Revelation last year. I guess technically it’s 41…but one week last year we just sat in silence…remember that?

i. But it has been a few weeks since we’ve been in this letter, so I thought we would take this first Sunday back to do a little r, r &r…. Review, remind and recap.

b. As we move further and further along, as we dive deeper and deeper and deeper into the letter, it’s easy to forget what went on before.

i. Its easy to forget the big picture, the main purpose of this book, the style that this book is written in.

1. So, most of what I say today has already been said…multiple times probably. But I believe it’s the important information that bears repeating. The more we hear, the more we’ll learn about it…

a. The more we’ll understand it, the more we’ll believe it.

i. It’s not that I’m running out of things to say – but that this information is SO important, that it needs to be said again.

c. So far, we’ve studied up to 17:6. We have read every word of this book together in our services. And I want to start off by reminding us of the promise at the beginning of this book.

i. Remember what was said… 1:3 says…Blessed…

1. God blesses those who read these words, God blesses those who hear these words, God blesses those who obey these words.

a. I don’t know about you, but I have experienced God’s blessings as I have made my way through this book. I have been living in the book of Revelation since October 2017 – and I have been blessed by it.

i. Over the course of church history, we’ve done this book a disservice – disobeyed it even, by keeping it closed…by not studying it.

1. Each week last year, I had the privilege of reading this book, studying it intently, and then I had the privilege to prepare and preach from this amazing piece of literature.

d. Admittedly, some weeks were easier than others, and some passages were just downright hard. Where I would read that passage and think… “How am I going preach on that?”

i. But I have found this promise to be true. I have been blessed and encouraged by the words of this book.

1. And judging from the conversations and comments sparked by this study, I think I can safely assume that you too have been blessed by hearing the words of this book.

a. Maybe you’ve steered clear of Revelation… maybe you’ve read it before but didn’t really understand it or you got lost in the images…

i. But hopefully now, it makes a little more sense you…God’s blessing you with an understanding mind.

1. And the next time you read it, you’ll understand better, and the better still the next time after that.

a. When we take the words of this promise seriously, we’ll be blessed and encouraged as we read these words together.

ii. Now, understand that I’m not preaching the definitive be all and end all word on Revelation.

1. There’s always more to learn, more to explore, more to understand.

a. The more I read it, the I want to read it, the more I see the big picture, but also the more I see how everything fits together.

i. The more I read, the more I desire to finished strong what was started.

2. Remind – Remember that John is on the prison island of Patmos. It was reserved for the worst of the worst criminals. Those who were thought to be the disturbers of the Pax Romana.

a. John tells us that it was the Lord’s Day, Sunday, and while he was worshipping in the Spirit, he saw a vision of the Jesus – and Jesus told him to write down what he was about to see.

i. This letter is addressed to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor – now modern-day Turkey…

1. And this letter was written as a form of encouragement for fledging churches that were facing harsher and harsher persecution under the Roman authorities.

a. So as instructed, John wrote down what he saw, and it has been named Revelation – not Revelations – but one singular Revelation.

3. An Unveiling – So Revelation…what is it? Good thing for us we don’t have to guess at this. Revelation tells us what kind of document it is.

i. Right off the bat in 1:1 it says this… “This is a revelation.” Ok, fair enough. What does that mean?

1. Well, the Greek is the word apokalypsis – where we get our English word “Apocalypse.”

a. I played a fun game with you at the beginning of our study last year. I asked you what the word “Apocalypse” means.

i. And one phrase was the consensus answer…’end of the world.”

b. Earthquakes, floods, rain storms, snow storms are said to be of apocalyptic proportions…but we found out that it’s actually the wrong word.

i. Floods, earthquakes, they are catastrophic, but not apocalyptic.

1. Because the word apocalypse actually means unveiling. Think about it…Revelation is doing what…revealing something to us. Revealing something that has previously been hidden.

a. This whole letter is an unveiling a pulling back of the curtain.

ii. It’s like opening a present. Someone spend hours meticulously wrapping presents, trying their best to conceal what is inside.

1. But what happens, on Christmas or on birthdays – presents are revealed. The wrapping paper is peeled back to reveal what is inside…to reveal what had previously been hidden.

c. That’s what is going on here…Revelation reveals to us things unseen. It reveals to us the unseen realities of the future…

i. But it also reveals to us the unseen realities of the present.

1. And this particular revelation is way better than revealing presents…we’re told that this is a revelation…THE revelation of Jesus Christ.

a. And that means, no matter what we see or read in this book, if we don’t interpret everything in light of the risen Jesus, then we’ve read the book wrong.

i. At the end of our study this year, if we don’t find ourselves worshipping in awe and wonder at the feet of Jesus…

1. Then we’ve read the book wrong.

d. This is a book about Jesus as he is right now; a book about how he will be faithful to his people; a book about how he will bring history to its God ordained end.

i. And this is Revelation of Jesus Christ – in that it is about Jesus, and it is also given by Jesus.

1. Some English translations begin by saying, “the revelation of Jesus.”

a. While others may say, “the revelation from Jesus.” And guess what???

i. They are both right. The words we read and studied last year…the words we will read this year are from the one who is faithful and true.

1. A Revelation, an apocalypse, an unveiling of Jesus, about Jesus, given by Jesus. Incredible.

4. A Prophecy – Revelation is a piece of apocalyptic literature…but Revelation further describes itself as a prophecy. Look at 1:3.

a. So what is prophecy? The popular understanding of prophecy is that it predicts the future.

i. And while it’s true that prophecy includes futuristic elements to it – predicting the future wasn’t and isn’t the main goal of prophecy.

1. Prophecy, the OT prophets, Revelation – is mainly about calling God’s people to repentance in the present.

a. Prophecy isn’t so much about being a timeline of future events…prophecy is more about “Thus says the Lord.”

ii. Prophecy paints a picture of what the future looks like when God is ignored and disobeyed.

1. Prophet after prophet warned Judah and Israel what would happen if they continued to ignore God and worship other gods.

a. And they painted that picture of future in order to affect the present. Prophecy calls God’s people to repentance and obedience in the present.

b. Have you ever done a spiritual gifts survey and have the gift of prophecy on there?

i. Well, that doesn’t mean you have some kind of psychic power to predict the future…

1. It means God has endowed you with a special gift that enables you to call people to repentance and obey the ways of God.

c. This is exactly what Revelation does. Throughout the letter a comparison is being made.

i. On the one hand, we have God’s people, those who have been purchased by the blood of the Lamb…

1. And on the other side we have those who belong to this world – those who have rejected God.

a. One or the other – no middle ground.

i. And through a series of visions, cyclical visions of 7, Revelation compares these two groups.

1. More specifically, Revelation compares the eternal destinies of these two groups.

d. So, the visions begin, and God pours out his wrath, and a quarter of things are judged. The 7 seals are broken, and just when we think we are coming to the end of the book…

i. The visions start again, and the 7 trumpets are blown…

1. And the judgment ramps up a bit and a third of things are judged…

a. And again, just when we think we’re coming to the end of the book, we start over again, and the 7 bowls are poured out…only this time there are no more fractions…

i. Total and complete judgment.

e. And there is a comparison made throughout. Whenever we come to what looks like the end…no matter what happened or how we got there or what perspective we looked at it…

i. The visions ALWAYS end with God’s people worshipping around his throne…and the people who belong to this world end up in conscious torment.

1. Through these visions, Revelation poses the question, if that’s how they end…how should you live now?

a. Showing the future in order to affect the present.

i. Worshipping God now, may lead to ridicule and persecution and maybe even death NOW, but it will lead to perfect peace and rest and worship around God’s throne for all of eternity.

b. On the flipside – rejecting God now, may lead to a life of relative ease and comfort NOT – but it will lead to an eternity of God rejecting you.

i. If that’s how it ends…how should we live now?

f. God blesses the one who obeys what it says…what does Revelation tell us to do? Overcome.

i. No matter what kind of beastly opposition comes our way…we overcome.

1. No matter what kind of sensual temptation we are presented with…we overcome.

a. No matter what kind of financial temptation comes our way…we overcome.

g. It’s the main promise in the 7 letters – to those who overcome I will give…

i. So how do we overcome? We looked at it before in 12:11.

1. We overcome, not by relying on our own strength and fortitude. We don’t overcome by becoming our best selves or by positive thinking…we overcome by the blood of the Lamb.

a. We overcome by the strength of our testimony.

i. Knowing that we have been saved. Knowing that since we are in Christ, we are new creations.

1. Confident in the saving work of Jesus and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.

ii. And we overcome by not being afraid to lose our lives for Jesus’ sake.

1. If you are in Christ, we recognize that we have a glorious future ahead of us, that there’s more to life than what happens on earth.

a. We overcome by realizing that death is not the end – it is simply the gateway to life – eternal life worshipping around God’s throne.

h. Revelation is prophecy – painting a picture of the future in order to affect the change and repentance in the present.

i. We’ve seen the end – how should we live now?

5. A Letter – Finally, Revelation describes itself as a letter. 1:4 – This letter is from John.

a. This book of Revelation, with all its crazy visions and complex structure…it’s glorious throne room scenes…

i. When it comes right now to it is a pastoral letter.

1. A personal piece of correspondence – written from a pastor to his congregations.

a. This is a letter – imploring them to remain faithful.

i. A letter, calling them to wake up from their apathy, or encouraging them in their faithfulness.

1. This is a letter, showing God’s people what will come their way, what it looks like to overcome and why it is worth to overcome.

b. But ultimately, this isn’t a letter from John – yes John faithfully wrote what he saw, as he was commanded to…

i. When it comes right down to it – this is a personal letter from Jesus to church.

1. This is a letter from our Saviour – giving us a glimpse of his resurrected self.

a. Giving us a picture of what is taking place in God’s presence at this very moment.

i. A letter from our Saviour – showing us the world as it really is – stripped of its fancy adornment…

1. This is a letter from Jesus to us – showing us the glorious future that awaits his people.

6. Conclusion – This is an incredible piece of literature. The more I study it, the more I want to study it.

a. The more I preach it, the more I see a need for it to be preached.

i. The more I see place where I could go back and spend more time developing themes or explaining concepts in more detail.

1. Next week we’re going to press on. We’re in chapter 17. So this week read all of Revelation 17. Ask yourself these two questions as you read.

a. We’re studied 17:1-6 already, but re-read those verses just to refresh your memory.

b. Also, as we draw nearer to the end of this study – take some time to re-read the entire letter – and try to do it in one sitting.

i. This letter was meant to be read as a whole, and we miss a lot of the big picture by only looking at it in chunks.

1. Looking at it bit by bit can help us understand the parts, but reading the whole letter at one time can help us better understand the flow and structure of this amazing piece of literature.

a. It is an unveiling, a prophecy and a personal letter.

i. Give it a shot, try reading this whole letter from start to finish in one sitting and experience God’s blessing as you read and hear and obey the words of this amazing book of the Bible.