TODAY’S VERSE:
Revelation 22:16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
We have finished our “What’s in the Bible” video series in prep school which ended with the last book of the Bible;
Revelation
-Written by the Apostle John in what is called the Apocalyptic writing style.
-Revelation means: disclosure or unveiling, revealing what will happen in the future. So, this book is written to tell us what will happen in the future.
-John was given visions filled with symbols like lampstands, dragons, locusts, and numbers, such as:
->4= four corners of the Earth (covering the whole Earth)
->7= perfection or completeness
->12= 12 tribes of Israel or 12 disciples or both
->1,000= a whole lot
-The book is structured around the number seven. The 1st 3 chapters are 7 very short letters, written to 7 different churches in Asia. They are filled with both encouragement from Jesus during tribulation (trouble) and criticism for their less than righteous lifestyles.
-There are 3 sections, each with 7 signs or events:
1) A scroll with 7 seals which can only be open and read by the Lamb. The Lamb has 7 eyes and 7 horns.
-7 eyes= perfect vision (omniscience, all-knowing).
-7 horns= perfect strength (omnipotence, all-powerful).
-7 seals represented 7 ways people hurt each other.
2) 7 trumpets blown by 7 angels
-Each trumpet starts a plague on the earth, which serve as warnings to God’s enemies to change their ways before it is too late.
3) 7 bowls with 7 plagues. These represent the wrath of God.
The book continues with John’s visions of the future for God’s enemies. The symbolism continues with:
-Dragon= Satan, Woman= Israel, Baby= Jesus. From the woman came Jesus and Satan wanted to kill Him. Since Satan could not, he goes after God’s people.
-The dragon calls a beast from the sea with 10 horns on 7 heads, each wearing a crown. He calls another beast from the land. They work together to harm God’s people.
-The Messiah defeats the armies of the world and the dragon is captured. He is then released for 1000 years.
-In the end, Satan is thrown into the Lake of fire, along with death. God destroys evil and sets things right.
-John sees a new Heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem coming down from the sky.
-He sees the City of God, with the throne of God in the center, the river of the water of life flowing from it, and the trees of life on both sides of the river.
Wow, right? We must focus on the big picture when reading this book. It serves as both a warning and a source of encouragement. We have an enemy and things will be getting worse before they get better, but the Lord is already victorious! What started in a garden, ends in a garden city. This is our ultimate destination, where we will live with Him FOREVER! No more sin, no more tears, no more death- just an eternity of perfect peace!
We hope you enjoyed this walk through the Bible as much as we have. Keep reading your Bible every day, there is always more to learn!
