November 9, 2012
THE TIME IS NEAR
Revelation 1
MJ Massinger
Central Truth
Jesus Christ is coming back very soon.
Key Verse | Revelation 1:3
Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near. (Revelation 1:3)
Revelation 1
Prologue
1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants 1 1:1 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface; likewise for servant later in this verse the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
Greeting to the Seven Churches
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia:
Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail 2 1:7 Or mourn on account of him. Even so. Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Vision of the Son of Man
9 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. 14 The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, 15 his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. 16 In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. 19 Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. 20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
Dive Deeper | Revelation 1
In this passage, the Apostle John gives a short introduction to the book of Revelation, which tells of the coming of Christ. The verse that sticks out to me is Revelation 1:3. It tells us that whoever reads this book will be blessed, and whoever hears and follows it will be blessed. In the early church, many people could not read, so "[b]lessed is he who reads" referred specifically to the person reading to the group, while "those who hear" referred to those who were listening to the reader. All believers should also "heed" the words of this book.
I think this means that, when the time comes, believers will (a) know what is going on, and (b) know what to do; and in this way they'll be blessed. If you believe the Word, you'll be ready for His return and look forward to what is coming next.
In churches today, we are readers and listeners. The application of this passage for us is to read, listen, and act upon God's Word. A couple of days ago, my dad and I were discussing that just saying we believe Christ lived and other facts about His life is not enough. Even Satan and his demons believe that there is one God, for example (see James 2:19), and they know about Jesus. Also, many people say they are Christians and may even know a lot about the Bible, but they do not take God's Word "to heart" (see Revelation 1:3, NIV). We should "heed" God's Word and show His love through our actions.
Discussion Questions
1. What are some examples of how you can read, hear, and obey God's Word?
2. What makes someone who truly heeds God's Word stand out?
3. What in your life demonstrates that you truly believe God's Word?
WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY
November 5-9 (1 John 5 – Revelation 1)
Read Revelation 1.
• Look up the word revelation in the dictionary.
According to verse 1 who is this revelation from? Who received the revelation? Who is the revelation for? (The seven churches, and it's also for us.)
•
What does Jesus say about Himself in verse 8? Read Hebrews 13:8 also.
How does that make you feel about Jesus?
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Who did John see standing with the lampstands?
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How many lampstands are there? How many stars was Jesus holding?
• Who did He say the lampstands and stars represent?
The Book of Revelation was written to show us the full identity of Christ and to give warning and hope to believers. It is not an easy book, but as verse 3 says, God blesses those who read it, listen to it, and obey it.
Activity: Reread verses 11-20 together. Draw and color a picture of what John saw. Be sure to label the lampstands with the seven churches. We will dive more into the seven churches next week!