It’s finally time. Yes, that’s right, the series you’ve all been waiting for! This Sunday, we’ll embark on our much awaited study of Revelation. This book is, perhaps, one of the most confusing, yet beautiful, books in the Bible.
What comes to mind when you think of the Revelation given to John? Perhaps it’s images of the Antichrist, the number 666, the beast, the lake of fire, the Great Tribulation, the purported Rapture, or the Millennium. Many of these images do indeed play a prominent role in Revelation. I contend, however, that the point of the book is much deeper than it is often given credit for. Indeed, the opening line boldly declares that what is to come is nothing less than “The revelation of Jesus Christ…” If that’s the case, it would behoove us to take another look.
This week, we’ll cover a bit of the background of Revelation as well as discuss some pertinent themes in the first chapter as well as the entirety of the book. I encourage everyone to spend some serious time interacting with the text from Revelation 1. Here’re a few questions to help guide your time (ones that I hope to address on Sunday as well):
- What differences do you see between how Jesus is presented in Revelation 1 as compared to the Gospels?
- What imagery/wordage is used in Revelation 1 that you’ve seen used elsewhere in Scripture?
- What is the significance of using those images/words?
- How do the previous questions impact your understanding of Jesus? How do you need to respond?
I thought the comparison of how Jesus is presented in Revelation 1 as compared to the Gospels was pretty interesting. I know our church doesn’t have a lot (any?) portraits of Jesus hanging around. But I grew up in a church that had a large picture of “Gospel” Jesus hanging in our youth room. I can still vividly remember it. I think if we had a picture of “Revelation” Jesus hanging in the room, as a middle school boy, I would have been a lot more interested in serving a god like that.
By: Mikel Berger on September 10, 2007
at 9:01 pm