Pastor's Ponderings: "Studying the Book of Revelation"
High-Level Overview of
Revelation
Revelation
1:19
Write the things which thou hast seen,
and the things which are, and
the things which shall be hereafter;
Verse
19 offers an overview of the book of Revelation from John’s first-century
perspective. It is a high-level—past, present, and future—viewpoint.
1. PAST: The things which thou HAST SEEN
2. PRESENT: The things WHICH ARE
3. FUTURE: The things which SHALL BE HEREAFTER
The
simplified outline: Verse 19 first points to the things which
“thou (John) hast seen,” with verse 20 pointing to what John already SAW.
Revelation chapters 2 and 3 chronicle what John SAW.
Revelation
1:20
The mystery of the seven stars which
thou sawest in my right
hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the
seven churches: and the seven
candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.
I. THE PAST: John writes in verse 20 that he already SAW the seven stars and seven golden candlesticks. He records what he saw in chapters 2 and 3, making these chapters already PAST. Verse 20 defines the CANDLESTICKS as the seven churches. It designates the seven STARS. These stars are the seven angels of each of those seven churches. The first verse of each church epistle addresses the angel of each of the seven churches.
·
“Unto the angel of the church of
Ephesus” (Revelation 2:1-2:7)
·
“And unto the angel of the church in
Smyrna” (Revelation 2:8-2:11)
·
“And to the angel of the church in
Pergamos” (Revelation 2:12-2:17)
·
“And unto the angel of the church in
Thyatira” (Revelation 2:18-2:28)
·
“And unto the angel of the church in
Sardis” (Revelation 3:1-3:6)
·
“And to the angel of the church in
Philadelphia” (Revelation 3:7-3:13)
·
“And unto the angel of the church of
the Laodiceans” (Revelation 3:14-3:22)
The
two words following chapter 3 in Revelation 4:1 reveal the passage
of time: “After this.” After what
John SAW (the churches of chapters 2 and 3, the last one mentioned in Revelation
3:22), John is now revealed as being in the PRESENT as he is
transported to Heaven (Revelation 4:1). It is essential
not to miss this point: John moved from speaking of the PAST to writing
concerning the PRESENT!
II.
The PRESENT: the book of Revelation reveals the PRESENT
as John appears in heaven. The timing indicates he has been transported
thousands of years into the future. A door in heaven opens. God transports (or
raptures) John from the earth. John shows up in the present, where God reveals
the “hereafter”—the future.
Revelation
4:1
After this I looked,
and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was
as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.
III. The
FUTURE: Notice the keyword
at the end of Revelation 4:1—“hereafter.” This word links the event to the outline
delineated in Revelation 1:19—the “hereafter” ending that
verse. One might view HEREAFTER as AFTER HERE since John PICTURES the Rapture
of the New Testament Church AFTER revealing the entire 2,000-year Church Age in
chapters 2 and 3.
The “hereafter”
divides further into three sections: These divisions run from:
·
2nd Viewpoint—God transports John TO
heaven (from Revelation 4:2 to Revelation 17:2)
Revelation
4:2 And
immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in
heaven, and one sat on the throne.
>>From
heaven, John views the 21 judgments on earth during Daniel’s Seventieth Week.
·
3rd Viewpoint—God transports John TO
the wilderness (from Revelation 17:3 to Revelation 21:9)
Revelation
17:3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness:
and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of
blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
>>From
the wilderness, John views God’s destruction of the world powers and the end of
all that offends God.
·
4th Viewpoint—God transports John TO
a great and high mountain (from Revelation
21:10 to Revelation 22:21)
Revelation
21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain,
and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven
from God,
>>From
the mountain, John views Eternity.
·
Note: The 1st Viewpoint was skipped but it was from
Patmos (Revelation 1:9), where John
views the Church Age. He describes what these seven churches are doing right
and wrong and God’s expectations of each. The Spirit speaking to the churches
happens before God transports John to the other three locations.
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ourselves approved unto God!
