A quick glance at Revelation

1
A quick glance at Revelation

• The hidden book of the bible.

2
At the Start
3
Main Takeaways

• Revelation is different than the rest of the New
  Testament
• The Artist content is high- Great source for
  music, art and other artistic elements
• Strong message about two alternatives Good and
  Evil Heaven and Hell God and the Devil- No gray
  area.

4
Revelation requires you to go through a change in
perspective.
5
Revelation is different.

• The book was written in a different style
• -Apocalyptic
• There are lots of codes in the text. Words and
  images can mean many things
• The numbers 7 and 12 have meaning
• You have to use your artistic side to understand
  the text- dont take it literally
• One scene has a sword coming out of Jesuss
  mouth. That cannot be taken literally.
• More than one understanding could be correct.
• If someone claims they have the key, dont
  believe it.

6
(No Transcript)
7
A few bits of intro

• It was written by John. Some think the apostle
  John and others a respected bishop.
• It was written between 50 and 110 AD. The exact
  date gets scholars all worked up. If it was
  before the destruction of the temple in
  Jerusalem, one set of interpretations is wrong.
  If after a different set is wrong.
• It was written on the Island of Patmos.
• There are many different groups of
  interpretation

8
(No Transcript)
9
Revelation 1

• A Vision of the Risen Lord
•  9 I am John, a follower together with all of
  you. We suffer because Jesus is our king, but he
  gives us the strength to endure. I was sent to
  Patmos Island, because I had preached God's
  message and had told about Jesus.

10
We are going to make a scary climb.
11
Rev. 1

• 10On the Lord's day the Spirit took control of
  me, and behind me I heard a loud voice that
  sounded like a trumpet. 11The voice said, "Write
  in a book what you see. Then send it to the seven
  churches in Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira,
  Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea." 12 When I
  turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven
  gold lampstands. 13There with the lampstands was
  someone who seemed to be the Son of Man. He was
  wearing a robe that reached down to his feet, and
  a gold cloth was wrapped around his chest. 14 His
  head and his hair were white as wool or snow, and
  his eyes looked like flames of fire. 15 His feet
  were glowing like bronze being heated in a
  furnace, and his voice sounded like the roar of a
  waterfall. 16 He held seven stars in his right
  hand, and a sharp double-edged sword was coming
  from his mouth. His face was shining as bright as
  the sun at noon.

12

• 17When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead
  person. But he put his right hand on me and said
     Don't be afraid! I am the first, the last,
  18and the living one. I died, but now I am alive
  forevermore, and I have the keys to death and the
  world of the dead. g 19Write what you have seen
  and what is and what will happen after these
  things. 20I will explain the mystery of the seven
  stars that you saw at my right side and the seven
  gold lampstands. The seven stars are the angels
  of the seven churches, and the lampstands are the
  seven churches.

13
What codes are in this photo?
14
An example of a code word

• 20I will explain the mystery of the seven stars
  that you saw at my right side and the seven gold
  lampstands. The seven stars are the angels of the
  seven churches, and the lampstands are the seven
  churches.
• Seven also means complete or all
• So 11The voice said, "Write in a book what you
  see. Then send it to the seven churches in
  Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis,
  Philadelphia, and Laodicea."
• Becomes 11The voice said, Write in a book what
  you see. Then send it to the complete church.

15
After our break, back
16
Rev. 1

• 10On the Lord's day the Spirit took control of
  me, and behind me I heard a loud voice that
  sounded like a trumpet. 11The voice said, "Write
  in a book what you see. Then send it to the seven
  churches in Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira,
  Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea." 12 When I
  turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven
  gold lampstands. 13There with the lampstands was
  someone who seemed to be the Son of Man. He was
  wearing a robe that reached down to his feet, and
  a gold cloth was wrapped around his chest. 14 His
  head and his hair were white as wool or snow, and
  his eyes looked like flames of fire. 15 His feet
  were glowing like bronze being heated in a
  furnace, and his voice sounded like the roar of a
  waterfall. 16 He held seven stars in his right
  hand, and a sharp double-edged sword was coming
  from his mouth. His face was shining as bright as
  the sun at noon.

17
Does this text drawn on something similar in the
Old Testament?
18
Daniel 10

• 2Daniel wrote For three weeks I was in sorrow.
  3I ate no fancy food or meat, I drank no wine,
  and I put no olive oil on my face or hair.
  4Then, on the twenty-fourth day of the first
  month, I was standing on the banks of the great
  Tigris River, 5when I looked up and saw someone
  dressed in linen and wearing a solid gold belt.
  6His body was like a precious stone, his face
  like lightning, his eyes like flaming fires, his
  arms and legs like polished bronze, and his voice
  like the roar of a crowd. 7Although the people
  who were with me did not see the vision, they
  became so frightened that they scattered and hid.
  8Only I saw this great vision. I became weak and
  pale, 9and at the sound of his voice, I fell
  facedown in a deep sleep.

19
Notice the half-eaten fish?
20
(No Transcript)
21
Much of Revelation has bad things happen. Rev. 19

• The Rider on the White Horse
•  11I looked and saw that heaven was open, and a
  white horse was there. Its rider was called
  Faithful and True, and he is always fair when he
  judges or goes to war. 12He had eyes like flames
  of fire, and he was wearing a lot of crowns. His
  name was written on him, but he was the only one
  who knew what the name meant.     13The rider
  wore a robe that was covered with blood, and he
  was known as "The Word of God." 14He was followed
  by armies from heaven that rode on horses and
  were dressed in pure white linen. 15From his
  mouth a sharp sword went out to attack the
  nations. He will rule them with an iron rod and
  will show the fierce anger of God All-Powerful by
  trampling the grapes in the pit where wine is
  made. 16On the part of the robe that covered his
  thigh was written, "KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF
  LORDS." 17I then saw an angel standing on the
  sun, and he shouted to all the birds flying in
  the sky, "Come and join in God's great feast!
  18You can eat the flesh of kings, rulers,
  leaders, horses, riders, free people, slaves,
  important people, and everyone else."
•     19I also saw the beast and all kings of the
  earth come together. They fought against the
  rider on the white horse and against his army.
  20But the beast was captured and so was the false
  prophet. This is the same prophet who had worked
  miracles for the beast, so that he could fool
  everyone who had the mark of the beast and
  worshiped the idol. The beast and the false
  prophet were thrown alive into a lake of burning
  sulfur. 21But the rest of their army was killed
  by the sword that came from the mouth of the
  rider on the horse. Then birds stuffed themselves
  on the dead bodies.

22
(No Transcript)
23
Revelation also talks about other topics

• The four horsemen
• The end of the earth
• The Prostitute
• 666
• The two watchman.
• But two that I want to cover are the throne and
  heaven.

24
While some think likes are thrones..
25
And some think their phones are hot..
26
And others worship cars
27
Revelation 4

• 1After this, I looked and saw a door that opened
  into heaven. Then the voice that had spoken to me
  at first and that sounded like a trumpet said,
  "Come up here! I will show you what must happen
  next." 2Right then the Spirit took control of me,
  and there in heaven I saw a throne and someone
  sitting on it. 3The one who was sitting there
  sparkled like precious stones of jasper and
  carnelian. A rainbow that looked like an emerald
  surrounded the throne. 4Twenty-four other thrones
  were in a circle around that throne. And on each
  of these thrones there was an elder dressed in
  white clothes and wearing a gold crown. 5Flashes
  of lightning and roars of thunder came out from
  the throne in the center of the circle. Seven
  torches, which are the seven spirits of God, were
  burning in front of the throne. 6Also in front of
  the throne was something that looked like a glass
  sea, clear as crystal.    Around the throne in
  the center were four living creatures covered
  front and back with eyes. 7The first creature was
  like a lion, the second one was like a bull, the
  third one had the face of a human, and the fourth
  was like a flying eagle. 8Each of the four living
  creatures had six wings, and their bodies were
  covered with eyes. Day and night they never
  stopped singing,
•    "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord,  the
  all-powerful God,  who was and is and is coming!"
  
•     9The living creatures kept praising,
  honoring, and thanking the one who sits on the
  throne and who lives forever and ever. 10At the
  same time the twenty-four elders knelt down
  before the one sitting on the throne. And as they
  worshiped the one who lives forever, they placed
  their crowns in front of the throne and said,
•     11"Our Lord and God, you are worthy to
  receive glory,  honor, and power.   You created
  all things, and by your decision they are  and
  were created."

28
What about hunger and other pains?
29
Revelation 21

• 1I saw Heaven and earth new-created. Gone the
  first Heaven, gone the first earth, gone the sea.
• 2I saw Holy Jerusalem, new-created, descending
  resplendent out of Heaven, as ready for God as a
  bride for her husband.
• 3-5I heard a voice thunder from the Throne
  Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood,
  making his home with men and women! Theyre his
  people, hes their God. Hell wipe every tear
  from their eyes. Death is gone for goodtears
  gone, crying gone, pain goneall the first order
  of things gone. The Enthroned continued, Look!
  Im making everything new.

30
(No Transcript)
31
Rev 22

• Then the Angel showed me the Water-of-Life River,
  crystal bright. It flowed from the Throne of God
  and the Lamb, right down the middle of the
  street. The Tree of Life was planted on each side
  of the River, producing twelve kinds of fruit, a
  ripe fruit each month. The leaves of the Tree are
  for healing the nations. Never again will
  anything be cursed. The Throne of God and of the
  Lamb is at the center. His servants will offer
  God serviceworshiping, theyll look on his face,
  their foreheads mirroring God. Never again will
  there be any night. No one will need lamplight or
  sunlight. The shining of God, the Master, is all
  the light anyone needs. And they will rule with
  him age after age after age

32
(No Transcript)
33
My view

• Theme 1 The Power of God
• Theme 2 Christ is our Savior
• Theme 3 The relationship between God and humans.
• Theme 4  The War between Satan and God.
• Theme 5 Our God is Just, but to be just, God has
  to Judge.
• Theme 6 Heaven is an Incredible Place!
• Theme 7 We must act.
• Want to know more about my commentary?
• Commentarybye.org

34
(No Transcript)
35
Main Takeaways

• Revelation is different than the rest of the New
  Testament
• The Artistic content is high- Great source for
  music, art and other artistic elements
• Strong message about two alternatives Good and
  Evil Heaven and Hell God and the Devil- No gray
  area.

36
Question for small groups

• 1) Have you ever had a dream that was very
  unusual?
• 2) What does the images of Jesus and God tell you
  about who they are?
• 3) Why is Revelation so black and white? How do
  you react to this?

37
(No Transcript)