BoldGrace

What About The Book of Revelation?

I received an e-mail from Jason about some questions he had because of what he had heard a preacher say on the radio.  He said this preacher was going on and on about God keeping records and how we would be judged according to our deeds, yada yada yada.  Jason has asked me to comment on this so I will try my best.

First of all if you really want to understand all that the book of Revelation says you have to spend a great deal more time then I can in a brief post, but at the same time there are enough key passages that can make some things crystal clear.  The main point I want to make in this post is that the book of Revelations was never written for us.  It was written to the people of the first century and it had everything to do with the final destruction of the temple along with all that it stood for.  Allow me to share some of those clear passages.

Rev 1:1 The 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:

Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Rev 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

The very first verse says clearly that this revelation of Jesus Christ was about things which must shortly come to pass.   It’s been over 2000 years since that was written…….just what does shortly mean?

The third verse says THE TIME IS AT HAND.   Again, it’s been over 2000 years……..Is the time still at hand?

The seventh verse says that those that pierced him would see him coming.   The very men who shoved the spear in his side……..are they still living today?

 Now let’s skip to the last chapter:

Rev 22:6-10 

6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. 

7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. 

10 And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.

Again in verse 6 he uses the term "things which must shortly be done."   Does John understand shortly?

In verse 7 he says "I come quickly".   2000 years does not describe quick.

And in verse 10 John is told that the book of prophecy should not be sealed up….WHY?  "FOR THE TIME IS AT HAND."

 The point is that this book has nothing to do with what the preacher on the radio had to say about it.  Does anyone really believe God is going to judge us by OUR DEEDS?  If so, who is good enough and what is the purpose of grace (which means unmerited favor)?

The book of Revelations was written by the latest research at 68AD.  The destruction of Jerusalem and Temple along with that whole system of life was destroyed in 70AD.  These are facts.  Yes, I will be the first to admit that the book of Revelations is difficult but when you understand God’s judgments are always about LOVE you will always feel a peace that there is never a time we can’t trust him.  If it depends on our deeds we can never have peace.

The twenty-forth chapter of Mathew is often call the little book of Revelation because it also deals with some of the same judgments and catastrophic events.  I am going to print the first portion of that chapter and for those of you who are interested I want you to read through slowing and ask yourself some very simple questions.

Matt 24:1-34

1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.

2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

16 Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains:

17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:

18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.

19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:

21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.

24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

25 Behold, I have told you before.

26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

• Who is Jesus talking to?  You will see clearly he is talking to his disciples every step of the way not to someone 2000 years away.
• Did Jesus predict the destruction of the temple?  It seems verse two makes that crystal clear and we know from history that it happened in 70AD.
• When did Jesus say that all the things he was predicting would take place?    Didn’t he say clearly in verse 34 that the current generation would NOT pass away until ALL these things be fulfilled?  That means every thing he mentions from verse 1 to verse 34 would take place within a generation.  A generation in the bible has always been 40 years.  He spoke theses words around 33AD and the stones of the temple came tumbling down at 70AD——–THAT’S WITHIN A GENERATION.

The bottom line to all of this is that God was destroying the system of religion whereby man thought he could get right with God by doing and believing something.  God utterly and completely destroyed that system at the cross when Jesus was lifted up and drew ALL men unto himself. 

The writer of Hebrews talks about this new way and also how the old was would soon vanish.   Read verse 13 below and you will see that there was a period of time after the cross where the old system was still standing but would soon be removed.

Heb 8:6-13

6 But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises.

7 For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another.

8 But God found fault with the people and said b: "The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

9 It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them,       declares the Lord.

10 This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

11 No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.

12 For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." c 

13 By calling this covenant "new," he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.

Mathew 24 and the book of Revelation is simply talking about the removal of that old system in great symbolic language. 

And by the way, I want God to destroy every vile thing in me.  Just like a great rain cleanses the earth, God has provided us with a PERFECT process whereby we have the filth of our own delusions washed clean and our PERFECTION will shine through as our only real identity.

It makes me so sad to hear preachers such as the one Jason heard preach a message of fear and hopelessness.  We have a God to be proud of that will never hurt us and will always stand by our side. 

Jason,  As I said earlier I know I can’t do this subject justice in one short post but I hope I at have least given you something to feel hopeful and positive about a Loving Father who will never let you down.

ONE FINAL POINT:  If I have an enemy and I am able to turn him into a friend haven’t I destroyed my enemy?  Isn’t that what God has done for all of us?  Yes, I am glad God destroys!!!!!