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Revelation

by | Oct 18, 2021 | Comfort and Grief, End Times, Famous Writers, Global Missions, Heaven, History, Scripture, The Gospel

Sermon Series – October 24 – December 19, 2021

“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place.” Revelation 1:1 

How does the Bible end? What were God’s final words to His people before the canon of Scripture closed? The answers are in the last book of the Bible – the book of Revelation. (Yes, the word is singular, not plural.) It is the revealing – the unveiling – of truth about the end of the world, but above all about the truth about Jesus Christ.

 

Our series will touch on key themes in Revelation, as it is a complicated prophecy with layers of symbolism that have been debated for generations. Here is an overview of what’s coming:

  • October 24 – The Unveiling – Revelation 1 – seeing the glory and power of Jesus puts all of the coming events in their proper perspective.
  • October 31 – Orientation to the End Part 1 – Revelation 6 – As Jesus opens the 7 seals, the “Day of the Lord” is about to begin – so these seals show us what to expect when the “birth pains” of Matthew 24 turn into active labor and give birth to the Great Tribulation.
  • November 7 – Orientation to the End Part 2 – Revelation 19-22 – We will discuss the primary views on the rapture, the Millennium, the tribulation and the return of Christ.
  • November 14 – All Nations – Revelation 7 – History ends and eternity begins with people from “every tongue and tribe and nation” worshiping around the throne of God. Our mission is to bring the eternal gospel to all who have not yet heard!
  • November 21 – War and Wrath – Revelation 8-18 – A summary of the wrath of God poured out in the 7 trumpets and 7 bowls, along with the increasing wrath of God’s enemies as they tear the world (and each other) apart.
  • November 28 – The Return of Christ – Revelation 19
  • December 5 – The Millennium – Revelation 20
  • December 12 – The Holy City – Revelation 21
  • December 19 – The Eternal Kingdom – Revelation 22

As you can see, there are a lot of details and debates to consider. Some parts of this vision are clear and other parts are less clear. One of the principles we will apply throughout is “exegetical humility.” Studying apocalyptic Scripture like Revelation, Daniel and Ezekiel requires a humble perspective that realizes we cannot fully understand what is being presented.

Even though there were over 300 Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in Jesus’ first coming, none of the religious leaders (Pharisees, Sadduccees, scribes etc.) understood them well enough to welcome Jesus as their Messiah. They understandably saw visions of the Messianic King and His Kingdom (Isaiah 7,9,11 etc.) and expected a triumphant warrior king, not a suffering servant. If those scholars missed it the first time, let’s be realistic to acknowledge we can’t understand everything perfectly either. 

 The main thing in Revelation is JESUS. If we focus on Him, we will have His peace regardless of how things play out. And Jesus told us what not to fear:

“I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!” Luke 12:4-5

Another principle we value highly at Oakwood is unity in the essentials. When it comes to the divinity of Christ, the authority of Scripture, salvation by faith alone and other key Biblical teachings, we will stand firm together. But when it comes to debatable matters – like the nature of the Millennium – we will be gracious as we study God’s Word, seeking to learn from those who hold different opinions.

Many evangelicals were raised in churches that vehemently and frequently taught a pre-tribulational rapture. You can see I’ve placed that with a question mark in my chart. Many pastors would not include a question mark there. But your understanding of “the rapture” (1 Thessalonians 4:17) is actually determined by your understanding of Israel in relation to the Church.

These are the kind of things we will wrestle with through this series – majoring on the majors and presenting different views on such disputable matters.

For my full presentation What to Expect When the World is Ending, click here.

Last year, I preached Is this the End of the World based on Matthew 24 and the “birth pains.” 

Here is my sketch on how the gospel advances and history ends:

And the Bible Project has done a great job walking through Revelation: