REVELATION # 1 REV. 1: INTRO: - 4-18-09
Today we’ll began a study of the book of the “REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST” ***and I’m sure we’ll be here awhile but we’re in no hurry.
Today I’ll try and lay a foundation to build on as we start. From what we read, we’re told that it was pinned down about “95-96 A.D.”
It was never God’s intention to hold back the meaning of the Revelation, but to show and to make known it’s meaning.
Without the book of Revelation, the Bible would be incomplete. Other Old and New Testament books add new dimensions and give added information and details of prophetic truth regarding the end times, but only Revelation draws them all together into a final conclusion.
Many other passages deal with this period of time like Matthew 24 and 1st thess. 5:, but not to the extent Revelation does.
In the Revelation we see Christ in His glory and position as the Great High Priest who is in charge of His church. We see Him in absolute control.
In the Gospels we find Him meek, lowly, humble, and dying upon a cross. He made Himself subject to His enemies on earth, but He is not like that in the Book of Revelation. He is in control. He is still the Lamb of God, but we see the wrath of the Lamb that terrifies the earth.
When He returns to the earth, He’ll not be belittled and spit upon, He’ll not be the meek and humble Person that He was the 1st time He was here, the next time the world hears from Him, He will be the Lion of the tribe of Juda as He roars out of Zion.
The message originated with God, it was given to Jesus Christ, He gave it to His angel, His angel gave it to John, and from John it goes to His servants that they might know what is coming to pass. And that is the way it has come to us today.
1The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified** it by his angel unto his servant John:
We see Christ in His glory and position as the Great High Priest who is in charge of His church. He is in absolute control.
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John the writer here is the son of Zebedee and Salome**[ sister of Mary the mother of Jesus] and the brother of James.
John’s was a fisherman (Matthew 4:21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them. 22And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.
John was one of the three that Jesus took with Him on several special occasions (Matthew 17:1; 26:37; Mark 5:37). Along with Peter and James, Johns brother.
He is referred to as “that disciple whom Jesus loved” in several places, and he is mentioned three times in the book of Acts. (Acts 3:1; 4:13; 8:14).
He wrote five books of the New Testament, and only he uses Christ’s title as “the Word” jn. 1:--1st jn. 1: & 5:
John said in Rev.22:8 that he saw and heard the things which he wrote.
He lived during the reign of Domitian, under whose rule the Christians were severely persecuted.
He identifies himself with other suffering saints as their “brother and companion in tribulation” (Revelation 1:9).
He was sent as a prisoner to the small island called Patmos about twenty-five miles off the coast of Asia Minor, in the Aegean Sea, or modern day Turkey.
It was while he was there on Patmos that God turned his bondage into a blessing, and gave John what we call the book of the “Revelation of Jesus Christ”.
And lets be sure to notice that it’s” THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST” singular, and not “revelations” plural. The book reveals Him, as we read all these verses in this book, every thing that is revealed in the book will happen in its own time and in the right order, all leading up to His revealing, or to His return in Chapter 19:.
The Patmos of persecution became to John the open door for service.
The word “REVELATION” means, “unveiling.” It gives us our English word apocalypse,
It means “to uncover, to reveal, to make manifest.”
In this book, the Holy Spirit reviles to us the glorified Christ in heaven and the fulfillment of His sovereign purposes in the world.
The opening statement vs.1 presents the book as “The Revelation of Jesus Christ” it’s not “The Revelation of St. John ”
This Book is all about His coming. His personal appearing is in view. It is the REVELATION.
I remember a man saying to me one time that THE BOOK OF REVELATION was for Preachers, but that’s not the case at all, it’s for all of us.
The book of the Revelation is one of the most neglected books in the Bible.
Man has at-tempted to do with this book the very thing that God, in the book, told him not to do, namely, “Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand” (Revelation 22:10).
The book of THE Revelation is a book of consummation, and so God has had it placed at the end of the Bible.
As we think on and read the Bible it becomes obvious that the Bible forms a complete cycle.
Genesis is the book of commencement; Revelation is the book of consummation.
Genesis—(1:1); The commencement of Heaven and earth
Revelation—(21:1). The consummation of Heaven and earth
Genesis— (3:1-19); The entrance of sin and the curse
Revelation—(21:27; 22:3). The end of sin and the curse
Genesis—(3:1-7) we have the beginning of Satan and his activities
Revelation—(20:10). The doom of Satan and his activities
Genesis—3:24); we see access to the tree of life is stopped
Revelation—(22:2). The tree of life is regained
Genesis—(2:18 5:5)**; Death makes its entrance
Revelation—(21:4). Death makes its exit
Genesis—(3:16); Sorrow begins
Revelation—(21:4). Sorrow is done away with
The Lord is what the Bible is all about, --He is in the 1st vs. of the Bible, the middle vs. of the Bible, and the last vs.
Gen.1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
PS. 118: 8 It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.
Rev. 22: 21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
The Revelation is a book of prophecy. Seven times we find the word “Prophecy” (1:3; 11:6; 19:10; 22:7,10,18,19).
Seven times it is stated that He Will come again (1:7; 2:25; 3:3; 3:11; 22:7,12,20). So this Book is all about His coming.
The number seven is used more throughout the book than any other number. It speaks of completion or perfection.
God completes His work in cycles of seven. Seven colors make a perfect spectrum; seven musical notes make up the scale. Seven days constitute one Week
At the fall of the wall of Jericho there were seven priests, seven Trumpets, and on the seventh day the people marched abound the wall seven times.
There are seven set feasts of JEHOVAH (Leviticus 23);
Seven secrets in the kingdom parables (MatThew 13)
And seven sayings of the Saviour from the cross.
There are 7 dispensations of time,
1. Dispensation of Innocence: Began from creation and ended with the fall of man 3:7.
2. Dispensation of Conscience: Began from the fall of Adam and Eve and man became so wicked that God sent the flood, only Noah and his family were protected by the ark. Gen.6:
3. Dispensation of Government: Began from the time Noah and his family got of the Ark, to the time of Abraham. Genesis 9:1-11:32.
4. Dispensation of Promise: Began with Abraham, as God promised him and his seed all the land, and ended with Moses on Mount Sinai. Genesis 12:1-Exodus 19:25.
5. Dispensation of the Law: Began with Moses and the 10 Commandments given to him by God on Mount Sinai in Exo.20: and ended with the time of Christ.
6. Dispensation of Grace: Began with the death of Christ and continues even today.
It will end with the rapture,
7. Dispensation of Tribulation: Will begin in the 4th chapter of Rev. as the True Church is taken out of this world. And end upon the millennial reign.
8. [New beginning] Dispensation of the Millennial Reign, and will continue into the New Heaven and new earth in Rev.22:
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There are 7 churches mentioned in Rev.2 &3, EPH-SMY-PER-TIAT-SARD-PHIL-LAD-. Each of these 7 churches represent a particular period of time that represents the extent of the Church age, and let me remind us that we are at this present in the 7th one without a doubt, the 6th & 7th church is here together at this time,** and as this last day church becomes more corrupt with each passing day, it’s a warning to we that are saved, we that are members of the Philadelphian church,”** brotherly love” that the Lord could call us out at any time as He spews out the Laodicians. We’ll have a lot to say about the 7 churches when we come to chapters 2 & 3.
The key verse to Rev. is 1:19 Write the things which thou hast seen,{1:] and the things which are,[2-3] and the things which shall be hereafter; [4-22]
So these three divisions are: past, present and future.
“The things which thou hast seen,” are in chapter 1, and it was to do with the vision of the glorious Christ.
“The things which are,” cover this present age, the age of the Church. 2: & 3:
John lived during the church’s early days, and we are living at the close of the same age.
This division ends with chapter three with the Laodicean Church, and as we’ll see both chapters are all in red writing, Jesus doing all the talking.
In chapter 4:1 the third division begins with the Rapture of the Church at the end of this present age, 4& 5 are a scene in heaven at the rapture and just after the rapture, to be followed by the description of the Tribulation in chapters 6-19, and closing with the personal & glorious appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ spoken of in chapter 19 and then the setting up of His millennial kingdom described in chapters 20 and 21.
Chapter 22 we’ll read that all things shall be made new along with a warning for tampering with the Word of God..
The Book of Revelation unveils things about Christ and the future.
