Study Notes Ed Underwood

Revelation: Jesus Wins! Therefore write what you saw, what is, and what will be after these things (Revelation 1:19).

The nine General Epistles point to the person and work of the resurrected Christ. They encourage Christians to cling to Him and exhort them to serve Him faithfully because He is the only source of life. Written primarily to persecuted Jewish Christians, the truths apply to every believer from every culture and in every age of church history.

The canon of Scripture closes with a majestic epistle written by the Apostle John in exile on the island of Patmos during the great persecution under the Roman Emperor Domitian (AD 95-96). John received the Revelation from the Lord Jesus through an angel. The letter was sent to the churches he shepherded in the Roman province of Asia. The book is a “Revelation of Jesus Christ,” an unveiling of His character and program of the ages. Just as Genesis is the book of beginnings, Revelation is the book of completion. In it the divine program of rescue of creation from sin is consummated, and the holy name of God is vindicated in the Second Advent and final victory of His Son, the resurrected Christ, who alone has authority to judge the earth, rescue creation, and to rule the universe in righteousness.

All Bible-centered believers and scholars agree that Revelation was written to assure Christians of the ultimate triumph of Christ over all who oppose Him and His people. The recipients in the early church were facing dark days of persecution and needed to know that Jesus would ultimately win. That’s the big picture message of Revelation—Jesus Wins!

All sincere and believing Christians and scholars do not agree on the interpretation of the message Jesus Wins! There are four major alternatives:

(1) The symbolic or idealist view sees Revelation as a symbolic portrait of the cosmic conflict of good vs. evil. Antichrist, in this view, is not a real person but the personification of evil.

(2) The preterist view (Latin word praeter means past) also rejects the prophetic aspect of Revelation, maintaining that it describes events of the first century. It is a symbolic description of the Roman persecution of the church, forced emperor worship under Domitian, and God’s judgment of Rome.

(3) The historicist view interprets the Apocalypse as an allegorical panorama of the church from the first century to the Second Advent.

(4) The futurist view we hold at Church of the Open Door, acknowledges the obvious allusions to the first-century persecution of the church by Rome had upon the letter. But we attempt to discern the literal meanings behind the symbolism of Revelation when sound interpretation permits it through the context and by correlation with other Scripture (especially the Old Testament prophets, and the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24-25). Our futurist view centers Revelation around the second advent of Christ who will return in power and glory to judge all who rejected His free gift of eternal life.

All of my notes and everything I say about the Book of Revelation is from the futurist view of prophecy. We believe in the snatching up of the church prior to the events of the Great Tribulation in chapters 6-19:6, the Second Coming in 19:7-21, a literal 1,000 year reign of Christ on earth or Millennium in chapter 20, and the rescue of creation in the new heaven and earth in 21:1-22:5.

Though we may not agree on the particulars of the Revelation, we should all agree that it is an unveiling of Jesus Christ—His person, His power, and His plan—for the rest of history. This book of prophecy is written to give us confidence that the One who washed us from our sins in His own blood will someday conquer evil and establish His rule over all creation:

The three major movements in the unveiling of Christ are previewed in 1:19: what you saw (1), what is (2- 3), and what will be after these things (4-22)

I. Live for Christ, because He is coming again to triumph over all who oppose Him.

Revelation: Live with confidence and be encouraged—Jesus Wins!

1. What you saw (1): Promising a blessing to all who read this book (1:13), the first chapter portrays God concluding with a theophany (visible manifestation of God that overwhelms John. The glory of the omnipotent and omniscient Christ assures the reader that He will subjugate all things under His authority.

2. What is (2-3): Real messages to seven of the churches close to John’s heart warn and guide all churches until the Second Advent to remain faithful to Jesus Christ. All churches and Christians who have an ear to hear “better hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (3:22).

3. And what will be after these things (4:1-22:5): John is caught up into heaven where he is given a vision of the divine majesty and the future plans of God.

   1. Father and Son are on the throne and are worshiped by the host of heaven because of who they are and what they have done—creation and redemption. Christ is declared worthy to open the seven seals of the book of judgment (4-5).

4. Prophecies of the Great Tribulation (6:1-19:6).

   1. 1. Three cycles of seven judgments—seals, trumpets and bowls—are sent from heaven to earth, where the Antichrist persecutes Christ’s people, though 144,000 are sealed for ministry in His name and a great multitude believes in Him (6-16).

      2. The great religio-political system (Babylon) rebelling against Christ and parallel to some version of a revived Roman empire falls (17-19:6).

      3. Christ is about to return to earth. The marriage feast of the Lamb is a rich time of fellowship with His bride, the church, and all before the throne erupt in praise to God. Jesus Christ returns as King of Kings and vindicates His righteousness and all who have been persecuted for His name (19:7-21).

   2. Prophecies of the Millennium (20:1-15). Satan is bound and saints reign for 1,000 years. Satan is released. Incredibly, there is a huge rebellion of those born during the Millennium against King Jesus. Satan is finally judged and tormented forever. All who have rebelled against the grace of God throughout the ages are judged at the Great White Throne Judgment.

   3. Prophecies of the Eternal State (21:2-22:5). The heavens and earth are recreated, the New Jerusalem descends, and the New Jerusalem is described. As it was in the Garden, so it is again. His people are in the special place He prepared for them so that He can dwell among them and love them.

5. Epilogue (22:6-21): Revelation concludes with the reassurance that Christ is coming quickly and a warm invitation to all to “take of the water of life free of charge” (22:17). Then, there is a stern warning not to add to the words of the book.

II. REVELATION AND YOU: There’s so much to argue about when it comes to Revelation and prophecy. But here are three truths we all need to hear:

1. The primary purpose of Revelation is to encourage Christians to remain faithful during hard times, knowing that Jesus is going to win.

2. Jesus gave us a roadmap of history. It may not be crystal clear to us now, but I believe that the generation of Christ-followers living through the dark days of chapters 6-19 will have no trouble connecting the prophecies from heaven with events on earth.

3. The warm invitation is the church’s ministry and the words every man, woman, boy and girl need to hear and respond to. Do you want the water of life? It’s free of charge. Trust in Jesus!