{"id":18949,"date":"2018-05-20T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-05-20T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sugar-land-bible-church.local\/sermon\/revelation-001-its-all-about-jesus\/"},"modified":"2018-05-20T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2018-05-20T05:00:00","slug":"revelation-001-its-all-about-jesus","status":"publish","type":"sermon","link":"https:\/\/slbc.org\/es\/sermon\/revelation-001-its-all-about-jesus\/","title":{"rendered":"Revelation 001 – It’s All About Jesus"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","book":[111],"series_event":[490],"sermon_service_type":[472],"speaker":[6],"class_list":["post-18949","sermon","type-sermon","status-publish","hentry","book-revelation","series_event-revelation","sermon_service_type-main-service","speaker-dr-andy-woods","no-post-thumbnail"],"acf":{"sermon_title":"Revelation 001 - It's All About Jesus","sermon_date":"20180520","sermon_month":"5","sermon_year":"2018","sermon_notes":5774,"sermon_slides":5773,"sermon_mp3":5775,"sermon_id":"52018111396","series_or_event":490,"service_type":[472],"speaker":6,"books_of_the_bible":111,"chapter_and_verse":"1:1","sermon_transcript":"Andy Woods\n\nIt\u2019s All About Jesus\n\n5-20-18\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Revelation 1:1\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lesson 1\n\nRevelation 1:1, leaving (finally) The Book of Daniel and going to the next logical place to go, which is the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 Daniel and Revelation go together, did you all know that?\u00a0 Daniel being sort of the basement and Revelation being the ceiling.\u00a0 The title of our message this morning is It\u2019s All About Jesus<\/em>.\u00a0 And of course as was mentioned our hearts go out to the victims in the latest shooting, our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families in this time of loss and as has been mentioned already it was a great time last night to see our five graduates be honored and recognized and move their way out of high school and into college.\u00a0 So please keep them and their families in prayer during this transition time.\n\nAnd I have to be honest with you, \u00a0I have probably shrunk more churches than I can think of by teaching Bible studies on the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 A lot of people just will not\u2026 they don\u2019t want to hear this book and they don\u2019t want to hear it taught in detail.\u00a0 And it was very heartening to me last week to discover the congregation was applauding (literally) my decision to move into the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 So thank you for that.\u00a0 [people clapping]\n\nFor those of you that know me fairly well one of the things I like to do before we launch into a book is I like to give you some background of the book.\u00a0 And one of the things I\u2019d like to do today to sort of familiarize us, orient us if you will, to the Book of Revelation is I\u2019d like to ask and answer ten questions about this book.\u00a0 And some of you are wondering what to do with the Daniel quiz or test that I gave you last time.\u00a0 You\u2019re supposed to take that text and tuck it into your Bible and we\u2019re going to be going over the answers the next opportunity in Sunday School.\u00a0 And if you didn\u2019t get the test, I\u2019m not sure if we have any left on the name tag table on your way out, you can just e-mail the church and we can get that over to you.\u00a0 But it\u2019s just sort of a test, I think it\u2019s a fairly easy test (but the teacher always thinks that, right?} just to sort of orient you to the Book of Daniel.\u00a0 So we\u2019ll give that a shot and we\u2019ll go over that in Sunday School.\n\nBut today we are moving into the Book of Revelation and an introduction to the Book of Revelation as we ask and answer ten questions about this book.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why I had you open up to the Book of Revelation chapter 1 and verse 1.\u00a0 And I think these are the same questions that you could ask and answer when you study any book of the Bible.\u00a0 Before you launch into a book you should probably get the background under your belt because it will help you appreciate what the book is about.\u00a0 And so that\u2019s what we are doing this morning with The Book of Revelation.\n\nNumber 1, question number 1, what is the book\u2019s title?\u00a0 And notice, if you will, Revelation 1:1, you learn a lot about a book just by its title.\u00a0 The title comes from the first verse; it says, \u201c\u201cThe Revelation<\/u>\u201d which is the Greek word [apokalopsis<\/em>]<\/u> \u201cof Jesus Christ, which\u00a0God gave Him to\u00a0show to His bond-servants,\u00a0the things which must soon take place; and He sent and\u00a0communicated\u00a0it\u00a0by His angel to His bond-servant\u00a0John.\u201d\n\nYou\u2019ll notice that the name of the book gets this word from the opening word or noun of that book, the apokalopsis<\/em> translated revelation, which means unveiling.\u00a0 That\u2019s what that word means, something is hidden but now it\u2019s disclosed.\u00a0 And the reason that is so significant is because in church history, and even today, the Book of Revelation has taken a bit of a beating by people who claim that the book cannot be understood.\u00a0 Well if it can\u2019t be understood then why is the opening word of the book the unveiling?\u00a0 That wouldn\u2019t make any sense, would it.\u00a0 God has reached down and disclosed to us something in this book that we could know no other way.\u00a0 \u201cIt must be stressed that Revelation means \u201cunveiling,\u201d not \u201cveiling<\/u>.\u201d\n\nAt the very least, it would be confusing to John\u2019s first century readers, as well as to later generations, for him to write so much about Babylon when he really meant Rome (Paul was not afraid to speak directly against Rome in his writings, so why should John be?) or \u2018the false church\u2019 (all the apostles , including John, wrote plainly and scathingly about false teachers and false doctrines in the church and would not hide their teachings by symbols). It must be stressed that Revelation means \u201cunveiling,\u201d not \u201cveiling<\/u>.\u201d In the absence of any statement in the text to the contrary, therefore, we must assume that the term Babylon applies to the real city of Babylon\u2026\u201d\u00a0 The Revelation Record, 323\u00a0 Revelation 1:1.\n\nGod did not give us a book, particularly the final book of the New Testament, to confuse us.\u00a0 You say well, wait a minute pastor, aren\u2019t there a lot of symbols in this book?\u00a0 And that is true, many, many symbols.\u00a0 However, as we proceed through the book I\u2019ll be showing you how each of\u00a0 these symbols is referring to something concrete.\u00a0\u00a0 The fancy name for that is each symbol has a reference and so as we learn the rules of interpretation we will learn to identify what the symbols are and as you\u2019ll discover, by learning a few rules you can know what every single symbol in the book represents.\u00a0 And yet this is not how the book has been treated over the last 2,000 years of church history.\u00a0 Many people believe that the Book of Revelation was not meant for man to understand.\n\nJohn Calvin, the great church Reformer wrote a commentary on virtually every single New Testament book and most of the Old Testament books but guess which book he did not write a commentary one?\u00a0 The Book of Revelation, claiming that The Book of Revelation could not be understood.\u00a0 Even by one of\u00a0 the greats of the past, the great Martin Luther, wanted nothing to do with the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 This is what he says in his preface to the New Testament.\n\nHe says, \u201cI miss more than one thing in this book,\u201d the Book of Revelation, \u201cand this makes me hold it to be neither apostolic nor prophetic\u2026I think of it almost as I do of the Fourth Book of Esdras,\u201d which is a non-canonical non-inspired book, \u201cand can in no way detect that the Holy Spirit produced it\u2026It is just the same as if we did not have it, and there are many far better books for us to keep. Finally, let everyone think of it [Revelation] as his own spirit gives him to. My spirit cannot fit itself into this book. There is one sufficient reason for me not to think highly of it \u2014 Christ is not taught or known in it;\u201d now I\u2019m not sure if he\u2019s reading the same book I\u2019m reading when he said that, \u201cbut to teach Christ is the thing which an apostle is bound, above all else, to do, as He says in Acts 1, \u2018Ye shall be my witnesses into Judea, Samaria, Jerusalem and the uttermost parts of the earth.\u2019 Therefore I stick to the books which give me Christ, clearly and purely.\u201d\u00a0 [Preface to the New Testament, 1522.]\u00a0\u00a0 End of quote.\u00a0 He made that statement in 1545, actually in the preface to Luther\u2019s commentary or translated edition of the New Testament.\n\nSo here\u2019s one of the greats of the past, Martin Luther, someone that we respect, someone that made great contributions to the historic Christian faith, that really did not want anything to do with the Book of Revelation on the grounds that it couldn\u2019t be understood and Jesus Christ is nowhere portrayed in the book.\u00a0 This is what I\u2019m talking about regarding the hits that this book has suffered in church history.\n\nNow you\u2019ll notice in the opening title that it\u2019s not just The Apokalopsis <\/em>or The Revelation, but it\u2019s \u201cThe Revelation of Jesus Christ.\u201d\u00a0 That\u2019s why it\u2019s sort of astounding to me that he could say he can\u2019t find Christ in the book; Christ is the point of the book!\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Now your study Bible, if you use a study Bible, it says at the top there, \u201cThe Revelation of John\u201d or some call it \u201cThe Revelation to John\u201d and many people think based on the study Bible notes at the top that the book is entitled \u201cThe Revelation of John.\u201d\u00a0 Now do we all know that the Holy Spirit didn\u2019t put this here in my study Bible?\u00a0 Man put that there.\u00a0 The book is not the revelation of John, John is just the mediator. The book is \u201cThe Revelation of Jesus Christ.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s all about Jesus, this book.\u00a0 That\u2019s why I\u2019ve entitled this message \u201cIt\u2019s All About Jesus.\u201d\n\nAnd since that is the point of the book one of the things that I would caution you against as we move into the book is not to lose Jesus in the book. That\u2019s a very easy thing to do because this book brings up some fascinating things, many of which I believe are happening or being set up right before our very eyes: the mark of the beast, the one-world religious system, the antichrist, and you see John never wrote a book about those things.\u00a0 He wrote a book about Jesus.\u00a0 The mark of the beast, the antichrist, the one world religious system needs to be understood in relation to Jesus and His ultimate sovereignty over those things.\u00a0 So we will be looking at many, many fascinating details in this book but the most fascinating of all, the spotlight should be focused on none other than Jesus Christ.\n\nI have pastor friends that say well, I just don\u2019t like Bible prophecy.\u00a0 The problem with that is Revelation 19:10, which says, \u201cFor the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 So when someone says to me well I don\u2019t like prophecy I usually say well you mean you don\u2019t like Jesus?\u00a0 They say what do you mean by that?\u00a0 Well, if\u00a0 you read Revelation 19:10 prophecy, like every other part of the Bible, points to Jesus Christ.\u00a0 Any attack on The Book of Revelation is none other than attack on the full disclosure and the revelation of Christ.\n\nWhat is this book about?\u00a0 It\u2019s Christ\u2019s final phase of redemption.\u00a0 It is the execution of His entrance into human history, and by the way, did you all know that the battle is already won?\u00a0 Revelation 5:9 says, of Jesus, \u201cYou were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0[Revelation 5:9, \u201cAnd they sang a new song, saying, \"Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.\n\nJesus has already entered history and won the final victory through His crucifixion and His resurrection from the dead, and because He has already secured that victory the victory has already been won.\u00a0 The Book of Revelation is just the final phase of that victory.\u00a0 The work has already been accomplished.\u00a0 There\u2019s no question where this thing is going; we don\u2019t have to sit on the edge of our seats with sweaty palms wondering is God really going to pull this thing off.\u00a0 It\u2019s a done deal, it just hasn\u2019t occurred yet factually from our point of reference.\n\nAnd by the way if you, today, are related to Jesus Christ by way of faith, you\u2019re on the winning side of history; did you know that?\u00a0 Jesus, in John 16:33 says, \u201cIn the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.\u201d\u00a0 He\u2019s already won, the victory is already secure, you are connected to Him by way of faith so you are a winner.\u00a0 You may not feel like a winner, you may not even look like a winner, but you\u2019re on the winning side because of the work that Christ has already accomplished.\u00a0 The Book of Revelation is just sort of the icing on the cake (if you will).\n\nNow one thing I\u2019ll call your attention to is Revelation 1:1, the noun \u201cRevelation\u201d or apokalypsis<\/em> is a singular noun.\u00a0 Many people call the Book of Revelation the Book of Revelations<\/u>, many pastors and preachers and teachers will call the Book of Revelation The Book of Revelations.\u00a0 And may I just say to you that it is not a multi vision book; it\u2019s a singular vision that John received on a particular day all in one sitting.\u00a0 This is not Revelations, plural, this is a singular revelation.\u00a0 It just happens to span 22 chapters.\n\nIt\u2019s very different than the Book of Daniel that we just finished studying.\u00a0 The Book of Daniel records all of Daniel\u2019s life, beginning at age 16 (roughly) all the way into his 80\u2019s and 90\u2019s where God showed him at different occasions of his life, spanning a great length of time, snippets or different visions.\u00a0 That is not what is happening in the Book of Revelation; it is a singular vision.\n\nSo that\u2019s a little bit about the title of the book.\u00a0 Now let\u2019s move to number 2, who wrote this book?\u00a0 Well the answer to that is pretty easy, God wrote the book.\u00a0 Well, that\u2019s true, but did He not use a human author?\u00a0 And the answer is He did use a human author; you\u2019ll see his name at the very end of Revelation 1:1, it says, \u201cHe sent and communicated it<\/em> by His angel to His bond-servant John.\u201d\u00a0 In fact, John\u2019s name is mentioned in this book three times in chapter 1 and then twice in the final two chapters of the book.\u00a0 John is the human author; John is the human instrument that Christ used to record this vision.\n\nIt\u2019s the same John that we read about in the Gospels, the same John that leaned against the chest of Christ in the Upper Room.\u00a0 It\u2019s the same John, it\u2019s just this time around sixty years have passed.\u00a0 John is no longer a young man with his whole life in front of him, at the age of 30 roughly.\u00a0 He is now in his 90\u2019s, sixty years have passed and most of his life, if not all of his life except for a few short snippets is behind him.\n\nJohn makes an incredible contribution to your Bible.\u00a0 Did you know that the Apostle John was used strategically by God late in his life to write five books?\u00a0 Number 1, the Gospel of John.\u00a0 Number 2, the three epistles of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John.\u00a0 And then finally, one more thing God wanted to use this man for prior to his death and that\u2019s The Book of Revelation.\u00a0 It is very interesting to observe that John had his most fruitful ministry, at least in terms of writing, at the very end of his life.\u00a0 And I say that because many people, as they get older they think God is finished with them.\u00a0 It could be that your most fruitful days of ministry are just in front of you, not behind you.\u00a0 And that was the case for John.\n\nThis takes us to a third question, where was John when he recorded this book?\u00a0 Where is the place of writing?\u00a0 And if you go down to Revelation 1:9 he tells us exactly where he was geographically.\u00a0 He says \u201cI, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are<\/em> in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos\u201d well where is that?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s a little tiny island off the coast of Asia Minor.\u00a0 In fact, the island is so small it doesn\u2019t even show up on most maps.\u00a0 It\u2019s in the Aegean Sea, 60 miles southwest of Ephesus; it\u2019s an area that abounded in volcanic rock and you might ask yourself well what was John doing out there?\u00a0 The answer is John was a trouble-maker; he was a troublemaker for the Emperor Domitian.\u00a0 Why was John a troublemaker?\u00a0 Because John kept talking about something that Rome, particularly the Roman Emperor Domitian didn\u2019t want anything to do with and didn\u2019t want it promoted and propagated, and that\u2019s a coming kingdom.\n\nYou see, John was what we today call a premillennialist.\u00a0 He taught the imminent return of Jesus Christ who would establish His kingdom on the earth.\u00a0 Rome didn\u2019t like that very much because Rome thought they were the kingdom.\u00a0 And John was saying things that no, the kingdoms of man will be overthrown cataclysmically and be replaced with the eternal kingdom of God.\u00a0 And this message of John was so profound, it was so much a part of his preaching that Domitian didn\u2019t know what to do with him so Domitian actually tried to boil John to death.\u00a0 So when we say John got himself in hot water we\u2019re speaking literally there.\u00a0 In fact, we have this very interesting citation from Eusebius and it talks about how Domitian frequently exiled people on islands that he didn\u2019t know what to do with.\n\nEusebius in his Eusebius Ecclesiastical History, [3.18.4] talks about Domitian, a poor individual named Domitilla, and this individual was banished on the island of Pontia.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because of her testimony to Jesus Christ.\u00a0 [\u201c\u2026and they even indicated the time accurately, relating that in the fifteenth year of Domitian<\/u>, Flavia Domitilla<\/u>, who was the niece of Flavius Clemens, one of the many consuls at Rome at that time, was banished<\/u> with many others to the island of Pontia<\/u> as testimony to Christ<\/u>.\u201d\u00a0 Eusebius Ecclesiastical History, 3.18.4]\n\nSo the fact that Domitian would do the exact same thing to John, except he put him on a different island, the island of Patmos, fits exactly with everything we know related to the Domitian Empire at the end of the first century.\u00a0 [Revelation 1:9, \u201cI, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are<\/em> in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos\u00a0 because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.\u201d]\u00a0 \u00a0And Tertullian tells us that Domitian tried to boil John to death.\u00a0 He says, \u201c\u2026where the Apostle John was first plunged, unhurt, into boiling oil, and thence remitted to his island-exile!\u201d\u00a0 [Tertullian\u00a0\u00a0 Prescription Against Heretics, 36]\n\nIt\u2019s very interesting that they tried to kill John if this tradition is true and the guy wouldn\u2019t die.\u00a0 And so Domitian really didn\u2019t know\u2026 what do you do with a guy that doesn\u2019t die?\u00a0 Well, you just throw them off on an island somewhere and that\u2019s the end of him, right?\u00a0 And this is a very encouraging thing to us because I believe that the following statement is true.\u00a0 We are indestructible until we have finished the work to which God has called us.\u00a0 Amen!\u00a0 I mean, there is virtually nothing that can stop or snuff out your life until it\u2019s your time and as long as you are alive, as long as your respiratory<\/em> system and cardiovascular system is functioning, as long as there\u2019s life in your body God, as a child of God, God has some sort of job or task for you to fulfill.\n\nSo John kept talking about a coming kingdom; in fact, in Revelation 5:10 he writes this:\u00a0 \u201cYou have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.\u201d See how dominant this coming kingdom was in John\u2019s ministry.\u00a0 And Domitian first tried to kill John and then after he wouldn\u2019t die he simply exiled him, like he did many, many other people, this time on the island of Patmos.\n\nThis takes us to a fourth question, who is the audience of this book?\u00a0 I mean, when John penned this book who exactly is he writing to.\u00a0 And if you go down to Revelation 1:11 you\u2019ll have an answer to that question;\u00a0 \u201csaying, \u2018Write in a book what you see, 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.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 Who is John writing to?\u00a0 He\u2019s writing from Patmos to the seven tiny struggling churches of Asia Minor.\n\nWhat you have to understand about John is at this stage in his life he is almost like, I would say a rock star within the evangelical Christian world because he\u2019s the last living eyewitness to Jesus.\u00a0 I mean, he\u2019s probably the last one alive.\u00a0 And he consequently was functioning as bishop, not over these churches but over many, many other churches in Asia Minor, that are found in the Bible. They looked to John for guidance. They looked to John for doctrine.\u00a0 They looked to John for truth.\u00a0 The New Testament hadn\u2019t even been fully completed yet and yet Jesus Christ had one final vision, one final word, one final statement to His church (or churches) and thus in the providence of God John was marooned on the Island of Patmos to receive this final vision.\u00a0 The final word, or words, of Jesus Christ to His church and\/or churches.\n\nAnd because this is written to the churches, that\u2019s very important to understand; the Book of Revelation is not written to unbelievers.\u00a0 Did you know that?\u00a0 If you want to find the part of John\u2019s writings that address unbelievers you would go to the Gospel of John because John, at the end of that book says here\u2019s why I compiled all of the signs that point to the deity of Christ, that you might believe and have life. \u00a0\u00a0[John 20:31, \u201cbut these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.\u201d]\u00a0 So obviously John is writing to people that hadn\u2019t believed yet and didn\u2019t have life yet, spiritual life.\n\nJohn is an evangelistic book, not so much the Book of Revelation; it\u2019s more of an edification book.\u00a0 It\u2019s a book designed for the believer.\u00a0 Now certainly an unbeliever could read this and for lack of a better phrase, \u201cget the hell scared out of them and get saved.\u201d\u00a0 Certainly that could happen and if it does happen, and I know people to whom it does happen but that really is not the major point of the book.\u00a0 This is not an evangelistic book, this is an edification book that\u2019s written to the churches.\n\nJohn gives us a hint of his audience; notice Revelation 1:9.\u00a0 He says, \u201cI, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, [was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.]\u201d\u00a0 See how John is claiming solidarity with his audience?\u00a0 He calls him their \u201cbrother,\u201d their \u201cfellow partaker\u201d in the kingdom and in Jesus.\u00a0 In other words,\u00a0 was John a believer?\u00a0 Well of course he was.\u00a0 John, by claiming solidarity, by claiming alignment with his audience is revealing to us, right here at the beginning of the book, that this book is addressed to the Christian.\u00a0 So who was it written to?\u00a0 It was written to the struggling seven churches of Asia Minor.\n\nWhen was it written?\u00a0 Well, the book was written at the very close of the first century.\u00a0 A very safe date for this would be A.D. 95.\u00a0 You say well how do you know that?\u00a0 I know that because of the testimony or Irenaeus, in his book, Against Heresies<\/em>.\u00a0 \u201cBut if it had been necessary to announce his name plainly at the present time, it would have been spoken by him who saw the apocalypse.\u201d<\/u>\u00a0 What is that? That\u2019s the Book of Revelation, the book we\u2019re studying.\u00a0 \u201cFor it<\/u>\u201d modifies which noun in the prior sentence?\u00a0 Apocalypse.\u00a0 For it<\/u> was not seen long ago, but almost in our own time, at the end of the reign of Domitian<\/u>.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0Domitian left the throne about A.D. 96 and so a very safe date for the book, based on what Irenaeus says here is A.D. 95.\n\nAnd let me explain something to you; virtually every church father embraced this position from the first century through the writings of Irenaeus all the way to the fifth century.\u00a0 The earliest Church Fathers believed in an A.D. 95 date for the book, at the close of the first century.\u00a0 The reason I bring this up is there are many, many people today are trying to argue that the book was not written in the 90\u2019s under the Emperor Domitian, the Empire of Domitian, that it was written in the 60\u2019s under Nero.\u00a0 And why in the world are they saying this?\u00a0 Because they\u2019re trying to argue that the Book of Revelation already happened in A.D. 70.\u00a0 That\u2019s a viewpoint called preterism which says the book was written in the 60\u2019s and its contents were fulfilled when Rome sacked Jerusalem in A.D. 70 so the antichrist is really Nero of the past; Babylon is really Jerusalem that was destroyed.\u00a0 And big, big names teach this.\u00a0 The late R. C. Sproul was an advocate of this position, and many, many others.\n\nAnd you see, the whole preterist mindset dissolves when you understand that the Book of Revelation can\u2019t be a prophecy about A.D. 70 because it was written a quarter of a century after A.D. 70.\u00a0 See that?\u00a0 That\u2019s why there\u2019s been a battle that\u2019s taken place recently concerning the date.\n\nIt\u2019s interesting that in Revelation 2:4 Jesus tells the church at Ephesus that they have left their first love. \u00a0He tells them that they have been invaded by the doctrine of the Nicolaitans\u00a0 \u00a0[Revelation 2:4, \u201cBut I have this against you, that you have left your first love.\u201d Revelation 2:6, \u201cBut you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.\u201d]\u00a0 And the problem is when\u00a0 you read the other book written to the church at Ephesus, the Book of Ephesians, there\u2019s no reference to them leaving their first love, there\u2019s no reference to the Nicolaitans, so what happened?\u00a0 Thirty-five years had elapsed between Ephesians and Revelation and the church at Ephesus, a great church, had become apostate.\n\nRevelation 3:17 of Laodicea says Laodicea has become prosperous.\u00a0 [Revelation 3:17, \u201c'Because you say, \u2018I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,\u2019 and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,\u201d]\u00a0 That doesn\u2019t fit an A.D. 60\u2019s date because the archeological records tell us that Laodicea was destroyed in an earthquake and it took several decades for that city, which included the church, to recover from that earthquake.\u00a0 So the city of Laodicean prosperity doesn\u2019t fit A.D. 60, it fits A.D. 95 because it would take a few decades to recover from an earthquake.\u00a0 It would take a few decades, three and a half roughly, for the church at Ephesus to leave its first love and begin to entertain the doctrine of the Nicolaitans.\n\nYou say well what\u2019s your point pastor?\u00a0 Here\u2019s my point: when you look at all of the details of this and A.D. 95 date fits much better than a Neronian A.D. 60\u2019s date.\u00a0 When was this book written?\u00a0 It was written at the end of the first century.\n\nSixth question; number six, how is this book organized?\u00a0 How would you outline this book?\u00a0 How would you wrap your arms around it?\u00a0 You always, when you study any book of the Bible want to look for a structural clue.\u00a0 And many times that structural clue is provided at the beginning of a book if you pay attention.\u00a0 Jesus said this to His disciples, in Acts 1: \u201cYou shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria, and even to the remote parts of the earth.\u201d\u00a0 [Acts 1:8, \u201cbut you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.\u201d]\u00a0 What He just did there is He gave the outline for the Book of Acts.\u00a0\u00a0 You\u2019ll be My witnesses in Jerusalem, that\u2019s chapters 1-7 of the Book of Acts.\u00a0 You shall be My witnesses in Judea and Samaria.\u00a0 That\u2019s chapters 8-12 of the Book of Acts.\u00a0 And you shall be My witnesses even to the remote parts of the earth.\u00a0 That\u2019s chapters 13-28 of the Book of Acts.\u00a0 Isn\u2019t it interesting how the Book of Acts provides an outline at the beginning.\n\nWe have the same exact thing happening in the Book of Revelation, chapter 1 and verse 19.\u00a0 Notice what it says there, \u201cTherefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.\u201d What you have there is an outline of the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 The Book of Revelation has within it a three part outline.\u00a0 Number 1, \u201cwrite the things which you have seen.\u201d That\u2019s Revelation chapter 1.\u00a0 That is the vision of the glorified Christ that John saw on the Island of Patmos in A.D. 95.\u00a0 You know, Jesus showed up on John\u2019s doorstep there in Patmos and gave him a vision of Himself.\u00a0 In fact, it wasn\u2019t really like the vision he remembered of Jesus when he used to walk with Him and leaned against His chest in the Upper Room and His incarnation.\u00a0 This was Jesus Christ in His glorified state.\u00a0 And let me tell you something, a glimpse of that shook John to the core of his being and he fell down as if he was dead.\u00a0 And he records that vision for us in chapter 1, \u201cthe things which you have seen.\u201d\n\nNumber 2, what does he say, \u201cwrite down the things that are.\u201d\u00a0 The \u201cthings that are\u201d is Revelation 2 and 3, Christ\u2019s words to the seven churches of Asia Minor.\u00a0 And then John is told, \u201cwrite down the things that will take place after these things.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 The Greek there is meta tauta<\/em>, after these things and \u201cafter these things\u201d is Revelation 4-22, the futuristic section of the book.\u00a0 The section of the book that is futuristic even from our time period.\n\nNow you say well how do you know Revelation 4 begins that third section.\u00a0 Notice Revelation 4:1, tell me if this rings a bell, \u201cAfter these things\u201d meta tauta<\/em> and then it says \u201cI looked, and behold, a door standing<\/em> open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound<\/em> of a trumpet speaking with me, said, \u2018Come up here, and I will show you what must take place\u201d what\u2019s the last phrase there, \u201cafter these things.\u201d\u2019\u00a0 \u201cAfter these things\u201d is used two times there in Revelation 4:1; that\u2019s our clue that John is getting ready to write the third major section of the book.\n\nThe book has three parts to it: \u201cwrite down the things that you have seen,\u201d chapter 1; \u201cwrite down the things that are,\u201d chapters 2 and 3; write down the things that will take place after these things\u201d the part of the book that is still future from our time period in the twenty-first century, and that\u2019s chapters 4-22.\u00a0 Now as we progress through the book and get to that third section I\u2019ll give you some more structural clues on how to further break that down.\u00a0 But for the time being just understand that this book has a very nice three part outline, a very nice three part structure to it.\n\nThis takes us to a seventh question, how was this book delivered to John on Patmos?\u00a0 What was the method of communication.\u00a0 Now has anybody played the telephone game?\u00a0 Nobody\u2019s played the telephone game.\u00a0 We\u2019ve got a few people out there.\u00a0 You guys know how the telephone game works; one person starts the beginning of a chain and gives a message, whispers in the ear of the next person, the next person, the next person, and it gets passed on and finally they say to the person at the end, what did you hear at the end and it\u2019s a big laugh because the final messages was very different than the original message.\u00a0 Or the final message somehow got garbled.\n\nSo the question arises, how do we know that John, when he received these things in the first century did not get a garbled message?\u00a0 And the answer is the Holy Spirit is very careful to reveal a seven-fold communication process.\u00a0 That process is found in chapter 1, verse 11 and chapter 2 verse 1.\u00a0 Notice what it says: \u201cThe revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave Him to show His bondservants the things which must soon take place, and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John,\u201d that\u2019s verse 1.\u00a0 Jumping down to verse 11, saying, \u201csaying, \u201cWrite in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches:\u201d and then it mentions the seven churches, [to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.\u2019\u201d]\u00a0 And then when you go over to \u00a0Revelation 2:1 it says, \u201cTo the angel of the church in Ephesus [write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:\u201d]\n\nSo according to verses 1 and 2 of chapter 1 the vision started with God the Father and was handed off to God the Son and then to an angel and then to John.\u00a0 John received it on Patmos at the end of the first century, in exile, and he is told to write it down in a book.\u00a0 The book ultimately would be sent where?\u00a0 To the seven churches.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why it keeps saying over and over again in this book, as we study it, John says, \u201cI saw\u201d and \u201cI heard.\u201d\u00a0 Now when you watch Mysteries of the Bible and the History Channel some guy from Harvard or somewhere like that, with a PhD after his name, will come on there and try to convince you that John did not write this book because the handwriting style is very different than his Gospel or his epistles.\n\nLet me ask you a question.\u00a0 Put yourself in poor John\u2019s shoes; the Lord shows up on your doorstep, scares the living daylights out of you, He shows you a vision and He says write it down and this took place within one day, one sitting.\u00a0 Wouldn\u2019t your handwriting get a little jumpy?\u00a0 I mean, when John wrote the Gospel of John he had time to calmly, coolly, deliberately think about his sentence structure and his words.\u00a0 Not so here!\u00a0 And that explains the difference in handwriting style.\u00a0 And a lot of these answers are so easy to respond to when you just look at the basic circumstances of these books.\n\nThe term \u201cwrite\u201d is found about twelve times in the book and John over and over again is saying I saw and I heard. And he\u2019s not given a lot of time to give explanation on it.\u00a0 And I think John is seeing things into the twenty-first century and how would you explain things in the twenty-first century?\u00a0 I mean, what if you took Benjamin Franklin and you resurrected him from the dead and you have him a trip through Hobby Airport and he sees someone on the internet or on their cell phone, or he sees a giant aircraft leave or come back or he hears something on the loud speaker.\u00a0 How would he explain that; he doesn\u2019t have the vocabulary, so he keeps saying \u201cit was like,\u201d \u201cit was as,\u201d and you see that\u2019s what John is doing in this book.\u00a0 He is seeing things that he really doesn\u2019t have a vocabulary for in the first century since these are probably twenty-first century material or even beyond.\u00a0\u00a0 And he\u2019s doing his best with the circumstances that he was put in.\n\nBut there is a chain of communication that\u2019s disclosed to us in the opening chapter, from the Father to the Son to an angel to John, to a book.\u00a0 Now Revelation 2:1 says to\u00a0 an angel again.\u00a0 [Revelation 2:1, \u201cTo the angel of the church in Ephesus write\u2026.\u201d]\u00a0 And while I think the first angel in the chain is literal I think the second angel is a preacher or a pastor over each pastor over each of the seven churches of Asia Minor because the word angelos<\/em>, the word translated \u201cangel\u201d can be\u00a0 used of a messenger; angelos<\/em> is used to describe John the Baptist in Matthew 11:10.\u00a0 [Matthew 11:10, \u201cThis is the one about whom it is written, \u2018BEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER AHEAD OF YOU, WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY BEFORE YOU.\u2019\u201d]\n\nSo through a pastor or a preacher and ultimately to the listener or the hearer of this vision; from the Father to the Son to an angel, to John, to a book, to a reader and\/or preacher and finally to a listener who hears this message and is edified by it.\u00a0 And so we see in the book a very airtight method of communication.\n\nThis takes us to number eight, what is this book about exactly?\u00a0 Here is what I think is the message of the book.\u00a0 Christ\u2019s\u00a0 ultimate victory over evil provides comfort to Christians of all ages as well as a stimulus for holy living because when God fulfills His covenants with Israel<\/u>\u2026\u201d oh oh, I\u2019ve got that underlined, it must be important, \u201c He will gain victory over evil as well as punish it.\u201d\u00a0 What he\u2019s saying is you, as a member of the church, are on the winning side of history even though we live in a world where evil abounds, because the ultimate eviction of Satan from this world and the\u00a0 ultimate establishment of the kingdom of God on earth is something that is so certain that from God\u2019s point of view it\u2019s a done deal.\u00a0 And by the way, when God does this He is going to wrap up unfinished business with the nation of Israel.\u00a0\u00a0 The doctrine of replacement theology, where God is through with the Jew, God has snipped the cord of national Israel, I don\u2019t know how to say this more nicely, it\u2019s heretical.\u00a0 It\u2019s heresy to say that, it\u2019s heresy to teach that, it\u2019s ill-informed biblical reading to communicate that and\u00a0 yet this is the majority position within Christendom since Augustine, all the way back in the fourth century.\n\nThe fact of the matter is God made a covenant with the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac\u00a0 and Jacob.\u00a0 It\u2019s called the Abrahamic Covenant, you\u2019ll read all about it in Genesis 15.\u00a0 And that covenant has two adjectives to describe it that you need to understand.\u00a0 Number one, unconditional and I\u2019ve developed this in other teaching so I won\u2019t go back into this but that covenant is something that rests completely and totally and solely on the shoulders of God for its performance. It doesn\u2019t even depend upon the Jewish people for its ultimate performance.\u00a0 So obviously this covenant does not depend upon man, it depends upon who?\u00a0 God. \u00a0And the best we can tell in the 21st<\/sup> century, although God has made good, perhaps on some of the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant that covenant today in the year 2018 remains unfulfilled.\n\nSo what does this mean?\u00a0 If God gives an unconditional covenant that today is unfulfilled at some point what does it mean?\u00a0 It means God can\u2019t lie, God has to put His hand back on the nation of Israel and they become the instrument through which His kingdom ultimately will arrive on the earth and that\u2019s why the prophet Jeremiah says, \u201cThus says the LORD, \u2018If the heavens above can be measured and the foundations of the earth searched out below, then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel For all that they have done,\u2019 declares the LORD.\u201d\u00a0 [Jeremiah 31:37]\n\n\u201cThus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for light by day And the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; The LORD of hosts is His name:\u201d\u00a0 [36] \u201cIf this fixed order departs From before Me,\u201d declares the LORD, \u201cThen the offspring of Israel also will cease From being a nation before Me forever.\u201d [Jeremiah 31:35]\n\nHere\u2019s how you get rid of the Jewish people;\u00a0 you get rid of the sun and the moon and the stars, because God has covenantally obligated Himself to say, through the Abrahamic Covenant, as long as the fixed order exists Israel will always be a nation before Me.\u00a0 Even when they were outside of their land God preserved them and God is not finished with the nation of Israel.\u00a0 And the Book of Revelation is a record of how God is going to vanquish evil through His instrument that He will bring to faith in the tribulation period called the nation of Israel.\u00a0\u00a0 And that\u2019s why when you get to the futuristic section of the book the whole book sounds so Jewish.\u00a0 Have you noticed that?\u00a0 I mean, there\u2019s not even a Southern Baptist mentioned in this section.\u00a0 [Laughter]\n\nRevelation 7, 144,000 Jews; Revelation 11, two Jewish witnesses, Revelation 12, the dragon pursuing the woman who I\u2019ll be showing you is the nation of Israel.\u00a0 Revelation 20:9, the headquarters of the millennial kingdom will be the city of Jerusalem.\u00a0 And then gates of the eternal city are going to be named after the twelve tribes. That\u2019s why in my message statement I underlined when God fulfills His covenants with the nation of Israel evil will be vanquished.\n\nThe Book of Revelation reveals two destinies; you have the heavenly destiny of the church that is caught up into heaven, Revelation 4, that\u2019s us.\u00a0 And then you have the earthly destiny of the nation of Israel, the instrument that God is going to use, Revelation 4-22, as well.\u00a0 Two stories being told.\u00a0 And the Bible reveals these two stories but how would you ever know how these two stories are going to end?\u00a0 The Book of Revelation tells you; it ties together themes which would have no resolution if you didn\u2019t have this final canonical book.\u00a0 Two destinies running, two trains running through Grand Central Station and yet Grand Central Station is the Book of Revelation that tells you how it\u2019s all going to play out.\n\nWhy was this book written?\u00a0 I mean, what is its purpose?\u00a0 Yes, it reveals great truths about the nation of Israel but what was the purpose to the original audience?\u00a0 When you\u2019re reading all of this stuff what are you supposed to get out of it exactly?\u00a0 The purpose of the book is to comfort the oppressed churches of Asia Minor and stimulate them to practical holiness through a future reminder of God\u2019s conquest and punishment of evil.\u00a0 Let me tell you something about these seven churches; these folks are struggling.\u00a0 Their struggles are very carefully documented for us in Revelation 2 and 3.\n\nAnd when you\u2019re a struggling Christian or a struggling church you\u2019re always wondering am I on the right side.\u00a0\u00a0 You might be saying to yourself I\u2019m the only one in my whole family that\u2019s saved.\u00a0 I\u2019m the only one in my whole work place that saved, every time I try to voice things about Jesus people just argue with me or they shout me down and you start to wonder, am I on the right side?\u00a0 And anybody that\u2019s struggled wrestles with that.\u00a0 And the Book of Revelation comes along and says you\u2019re on the winning side, you\u2019ve already won, it\u2019s just a matter of time before the final plan in the divine blueprint moves into execution.\n\nAnd so you read the Book of Revelation and you ought to be encouraged about it but here\u2019s something else it does.\u00a0 It reveals the hatred of God for sin.\u00a0 Sin is of such a magnitude, it\u2019s such a consequence that God has a blueprint in mind where sin will be judged.\u00a0 The Book of Revelation reveals that and it also shows us of a new world that\u2019s coming, a world untainted by sin.\u00a0 And you read all that and you say\u00a0 yeah, God really must hate sin.\u00a0 And if God really hates sin you say to yourself well you know what, number one, I need to get saved because I\u2019m a sinner by nature.\u00a0 And number two, if you\u2019re walking with God and there\u2019s compromise in your life because as a Christian we still have the ability to go back to the old nature and sin.\u00a0 Is that true with anybody here?\u00a0 Well, you guys just sinned right then and there,\u00a0 [laughter] it\u2019s called the sin of lying.\u00a0 [laughter]\u00a0 And so over and over again in the Christian we\u2019re tempted to go back to the old nature and sin.\u00a0 We have the resources in Christ to say no to the sin nature but the temptation is always there this side of eternity.\n\nAnd so why not just go back, after all, the pastor said \u201conce saved always saved,\u201d what does it matter?\u00a0 Because God hates sin, that\u2019s why.\u00a0 Sin is so profound that we think we can negotiate with it, we think we can control it but we can\u2019t.\u00a0 That\u2019s why God said to Cain, \u201csin is crouching at your door\u2026but you must master it.\u201d\u00a0 [Genesis 4:7, \u201c\u2026And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.\u201d]\n\nIn other words, if you don\u2019t get it under control through the divine resources it\u2019s going to very quickly get you under control and as we go through this book and we see God\u2019s hatred for sin and judgment for sin and the fact that His Son came into the world two thousand years ago to eradicate the barrier that we have between God because of sin, we say to ourselves God must hate sin!\u00a0 And if God hates sin that much maybe I shouldn\u2019t compromise in this area or compromise in that area.\u00a0 And so there is a natural stimulation to daily holiness when\u00a0 you read the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 There is a natural stimulation do encouragement when you read the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 This is how any generation in the last two thousand years could be blessed and edified by the Book of Revelation even though the events primarily take place on the earth after the church has been removed.\n\nPeople say why are we studying the Book of Revelation, I\u2019m not planning on being around for all that stuff.\u00a0 Well you study the Book of Revelation because God gave it to you to study, number one, it\u2019s written to the seven churches.\u00a0 And number two, it has an impact on your daily life through encouragement and through practical holiness.\n\nAnd this takes us to the tenth and final question, what makes the Book of Revelation different? What is unique about this book?\u00a0 What do you discover in the Book of Revelation that you couldn\u2019t discover reaping the remaining sixty-five books of the Bible?\u00a0\u00a0 And here are some, what I would call unique characteristics:\n\nNumber one, it is the only book that promises a blessing, not just to the hearer but to the heeder.\u00a0 Revelation 1:3 says, \u201cBlessed 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.\u201d\u00a0 The book opens that way, the book closes that way.\u00a0 Jesus says, \u201cAnd behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book.\u201d [Revelation 22:7]\n\nNow is there anybody in here that does not want to be blessed; can you put your hand up please.\u00a0 We all want to be blessed by God, don\u2019t we.\u00a0 How do you get blessed by God?\u00a0 You read and you heed.\u00a0 You remove the Book of Revelation from the diet of the Christian and you remove a blessing that this book naturally wants to introduce.\u00a0 Revelation 22:18-19 talks about a curse to the subtracters.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It says, \u201cI testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; [19] and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.\u201d\n\nYou say well what does that mean?\u00a0 I don\u2019t know if I know, I hope I get it figured out by the time I get to Revelation 22 so I can teach on it properly.\u00a0 I know this much though, God doesn\u2019t like it when people neglect this book.\u00a0 God doesn\u2019t like it when people minimize this book.\u00a0 God doesn\u2019t like it when people tamper with this book.\u00a0 And what do you do with a generation of church growth preachers that won\u2019t touch the book in forms of exposition because they\u2019re afraid of driving away unsaved, unchurched people?\u00a0 What do you do with that?\u00a0 It\u2019s a neglect, it puts you under not the blessing side of it but the cursing side of it.\n\nThe book is unique because it contains a ton of Old Testament material, 404 verses in the book, 278 are references to the Old Testament.\u00a0 You might be startled to discover this, as I was, that there\u2019s no Old Testament quotes in the Book of Revelation but there are plenty of illusions or references back to the Old Testament.\n\nThe book is unique because of its recurring numbers.\u00a0 The number four, seven, twelve, those numbers, for whatever reason, keep showing up over and over and over again.\u00a0 The book is unique because it\u2019s a record of God\u2019s vindication. It shows you that God, at the end of history wins!\u00a0 And if you\u2019re connected to Him by faith you\u2019re a winner already.\u00a0 It shows you in its uniqueness not just Jesus Christ as the Lamb but Jesus Christ as the what?\u00a0 The Lion.\u00a0 We all love the pictures of Jesus, you know, He had no place to lay His head, His suffering, the fact that He couldn\u2019t even get into an inn as an infant with his parents, the suffering Messiah! We have that picture blazed in our minds.\n\nBut what about the other side of Jesus, not the lamb but the lion?\u00a0 What about the Jesus that\u2019s coming back with a sharp sword out of His mouth striking the nations down?\u00a0\u00a0 What about that side of Jesus?\u00a0 What about the Jesus that\u2019s coming back to a world that\u2019s in rebellion against Him, that fights against Him and there\u2019s such a blood bath that the blood rises to the horse\u2019s bridles for two hundred miles?\u00a0 What about that Jesus?\u00a0 You don\u2019t get that picture of Jesus by reading John\u2019s Gospel; you get that picture of Jesus by reading John\u2019s Apocalypse and how important it is to have a full understanding of who this Jesus Christ is, not just the lamb but the lion.\n\nThe book is unique because it talks about worship. We have today in evangelical Christianity the worship wars.\u00a0 I don\u2019t even think we know what we\u2019re talking about half the time. We don\u2019t even know what worship is. What is it?\u00a0 It\u2019s a response to truth, that\u2019s what worship is.\u00a0 Truth is coming forth in divine righteousness in the Book of Revelation and heaven itself can\u2019t control themselves, they just have to worship and praise God for who He is.\u00a0 You want to understand worship?\u00a0 Read the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 The book is unique because of its many symbols, visions and imagery.\u00a0 But as I\u2019ll be showing you, there\u2019s easy rules to follow to figure out what those symbols mean, where they are what the mean.\n\nThe book is also unique, and this is new to me relatively, I didn\u2019t understand this until fairly recently, the book is\u00a0 unique in terms of its chronological organization.\u00a0 What do you have in the rest of the Bible concerning prophecies?\u00a0 You\u2019ve got scattered pieces, that\u2019s what you have.\u00a0 But nothing really comes along and takes all of those scattered pieces and puts them into a chronological framework.\u00a0 The Book of Revelation does just that.\u00a0 It\u2019s sort of like assembling pieces of a jigsaw puzzle; the scattered pieces and how would you know how to piece it together?\u00a0 Well, you have the box top, right?\u00a0 With a picture on it telling you what the assembled picture is going to look like once you get it put together.\n\nWhat is the jigsaw puzzle?\u00a0 It\u2019s the Bible, in terms of prophecy.\u00a0 What is the Book of Revelation?\u00a0 It\u2019s the box top, it\u2019s the picture, it\u2019s the portrait of how all of these scattered pieces fit together and comprise a beautiful Mosaic.\u00a0 You can\u2019t have that portrait or picture if you cut yourself off from the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 The only thing you\u2019re left with concerning the future is scattered, fragmented data.\u00a0 And I would say this, I don\u2019t think the Book of Revelation tells you a single thing that\u2019s new in terms of prophecy.\u00a0 Everything that it reveals has already been revealed.\u00a0 But I\u2019ll tell you what the Book of Revelation will do is it will come along and take all that scattered stuff and put it in order for you.\n\nAnd finally, the book is very interconnected with other biblical material.\u00a0 It\u2019s very connected, for example, with Genesis 1-3 how sin entered this universe.\u00a0 Revelation talks about how sin will exit our world.\u00a0 It\u2019s very connected with the prophecy of the Seventy weeks.\u00a0 You say aha, that\u2019s why the pastor took so long teaching that, because that\u2019s the foundation, that\u2019s the structure, that\u2019s the seven year tribulation period as revealed by the prophet Daniel; the Book of Revelation comes along and paints on a canvas already erected by Daniel in the prophecy of the Seventy weeks.\u00a0 You see, Daniel is like watching the movie in black and white; Revelation is the same movie,\u00a0 you\u2019re just watching it in color.\n\nDaniel is the basement, the Book of Revelation is the ceiling, and the Book of Revelation even reveals more than Daniel did, things about the church age that we\u2019re in now, and great information about what follows the tribulation period, the kingdom, the Great White Throne Judgment, the eternal state.\u00a0 You see how connected this book is to what God has already revealed?\u00a0 And to be completely frank with you, that\u2019s why this book is a mystery to so many; they start with the Book of Revelation, not understanding that the Book of Revelation is just summing up everything else in the Old Testament.\u00a0 The book is a mystery to\u00a0 us because we don\u2019t really know much about the Old Testament, do we?\n\nThe Book of Revelation is an answer to the prayer request that we\u2019re told to pray by the Lord, \u201cThy kingdom come.\u201d\u00a0 Aren\u2019t we told to pray that in the so-called Lord\u2019s Prayer?\u00a0 \u201cThy kingdom come,\u201d have you ever wondered how that prayer request is going to be answered?\u00a0 It\u2019s answered in the Book of Revelation, chapter 11, verse 15, which says, \u201cThe kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.\u201d\u00a0 The resolution to the prayer request in Matthew 6.\u00a0 You see all of these unique characteristics about the Book of Revelation.\n\nIn review, asking and answering ten questions.\u00a0 Number one, what is the title of the book?\u00a0 The Book of Revelation, the revelation of Jesus Christ.\n\nNumber two, who wrote it?\u00a0 John.\n\nNumber 3, where was it written from?\u00a0 Patmos.\n\nNumber 4, to who or whom was it written?\u00a0 The seven struggling churches of Asia Minor.\n\nNumber 5, when was it written?\u00a0 A.D. 95., the conclusion of the first century.\n\nNumber 6 how is this book organized?\u00a0 There\u2019s a three part outline given in Revelation 1:19.\u00a0 [Revelation 1:19, Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.\u201d]\n\nNumber 7, how was this book delivered?\u00a0 A seven step process starting with God the Father, ending with the pastors or the preachers over the churches of Asia Minor, those steps in terms of the giving of this vision are revealed at the beginning of the book.\n\nNumber 8, why was it written?\u00a0 It was written to motivate holiness and encouragement for any Christian that would ever read it.\n\nNumber 9, what\u2019s the book about?\u00a0 It\u2019s the final victory of Jesus which has already been won, it just hasn\u2019t been executed yet in real time.\n\nAnd number 10, what makes the book different?\u00a0 It\u2019s a summation or a chronological organization of scattered Old Testament information.\n\nI hope you\u2019re looking forward to the study of this book as much as I am.\u00a0 You know, you could be here today, not even knowing who Jesus is; a friend brought you, you\u2019re going to church because that\u2019s what they do in Texas, they go to church, I want to fit in culturally, you\u2019re surfing You Tube or internet, social media, you come across this sermon, what are these people talking about the final victory?\u00a0 The answer to that is the gospel, or good news, the final victory has already been achieved by Christ.\u00a0 The only issue is are you going to participate in the final victory?\u00a0 Are you going to be on the winning side of history or the losing side of history?\u00a0 Are you going to be on God\u2019s side and the manifestation of His kingdom on the earth?\u00a0 Or are you going down with Satan and his system.\n\nThat\u2019s up for grabs and that hangs on a single word, the word \u201cbelieve\u201d which means to trust.\n\nA person becomes or enters into a right relationship with their Creator and their Redeemer and thus gains or comes onto the right side of history because they\u2019ve believed or trusted in what Jesus has done.\u00a0 The Spirit of God has come into the world to convict men and women of their need to trust in Jesus Christ.\u00a0 If today you\u2019re feeling that conviction, that tug of the Spirit you can get the whole issue resolved right now simply by responding to the free offer of salvation which is through the gospel. And the only way to enter into that good news is through trust, which is another way of saying believe.\n\nYou don\u2019t have to walk an aisle to do this, join a church to do this, raise a hand to do this.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to give money to a local church to do this, you don\u2019t have to put yourself on some kind of self-improvement that only makes your flesh try harder anyway; you receive what Jesus has done in your place as a free gift and you do that by way of faith.\u00a0 It\u2019s a privacy between you and the Lord where you trust in Christ and Christ alone for salvation.\u00a0 If that\u2019s something that you\u2019re interested in doing I\u2019m available after the serve to talk.\n\nFather, even as people might right now be trusting in\u00a0 Your Son we just ask that You would convict, and beyond that You would be with our church and our teaching as we move through systematically this very important book. Help us to not just go through the Book of Revelation; help the Book of Revelation to go through us as we grow in\u00a0 You and walk in You.\u00a0 We\u2019ll be careful to give you all the praise and the glory. We ask these things in Jesus\u2019 name, and God\u2019s people said\u2026 Amen.","series_sermon_number":""},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t