Transcript The Book of Revelation

The Book of Revelation
*
“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. (Revelation 1:3)
*All rights reserved. Cooper P Abrams III
INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK
ITS CURRENT SIGNIFICANCE
“And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of
the prophecy of this book: for the time is at
hand.” (Revelation 22:10)
The Key to the Book:
“Write the things which
thou hast seen, and the
things which are, and the
things which shall be
hereafter.” (Revelation 1:19)
Future Prophetic Events -
-
SECOND
COMING
CHRIST'S
BIRTH
CHURCH
AGE
(Present Age)
SEVEN YEA R
TRIBULATION
1000 YEAR
MILLENNIAL
REIGN
GREAT WHITE
THRONE JUDGMENT
NEW HEAVENS
and
EARTH

___
______
__ _
Eternity
CROSS
CHU RCH
BEGINS AT
PENTECOST
RAPTURE
of
BODY of
CHRIST
ANTICHRIST THE
RULES
KINGDOM
AGE
Eternal
The Lake
Lake
of
of Fire
Fire
The Book of Revelation can be
contrasted with the Book of Genesis:
l. Commencement of life.
Consummation of heaven and earth.
Gen. l
Rev. 21:1
2. Entrance of sin into the world.
End of sin.
Gen. 3:1-19
Rev. 21:27; 22:3
3. Dawn of Satan.
Doom of Satan.
Gen. 3:1-7
Rev. 20:10
4. Tree of life relinquished.
Tree of life restored.
Gen. 2:9,3:24
Rev. 22:2
5. Death enters.
Death exits.
Gen. 2:17-5:5
Rev. 21:4
6. Sorrow begins.
Sorrow banished forever.
Gen. 3:16
Rev 21:4
SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT AS TO THE
INTERPRETATION OF THE BOOK.
The Four Main Views of Interpretation.
Preterist View:
events are past.
Book is symbolic and
Historic View:
False view. Events of
book have all happened in the past.
Idealist or Spiritual View:
The book
has not reference to history, past, present or
future.
Prophetic School or Futurist View:
The book as being the actual recorded events of
past and future history.
Chapters
1-3 - Beginning in John's day an unfolding of
the church history ending with the Rapture.
Chapters 4-18 - Future events of the coming Great
Tribulation ending at the Second Coming of Christ.
Chapter
19 - The Second Coming of Christ.
Chapter
20 - The Millennial reign of Christ.
Chapters 21-22 - Events at the end of the Millennium, the
New Heaven and Earth and Eternity.
INTERPRETIVE VIEWS
OF
THE BOOK OF
REVELATION
Post-Millennial View:
- Merges Israel with the churches.
-No literal Millennial Kingdom on earth.
-One general resurrection of all living and
dead.
-Ignores dispensational truths.
-Missionary efforts will bring about Christ’s
return
-After the events of WWI view was mostly
abandoned.
Amillennial View:
-"A“ in Amillennial: means = "no" thus Amillennial
means no Millennial Kingdom of Jesus Christ.
-World is in the Tribulation.
-One general resurrection of sheep and goats.
-Israel is set aside and churches inherit their
promises.
-Rejects a literal interpretation of Book of Revelation
-Held by most Protestants, and Southern Baptist
schools.
Mid-Tribulation, Pre-Wrath,
Pre-millennial View
-Christian will go through part of the
Tribulation.
-Christians will not go through the wrath of
God.
-Wrath of God is pour out on the earth in the
middle or first 3 ½ years of the Tribulation.
-Ignores Revelation 5:5 and Revelation 6 will
plainly teaches Jesus Christ pours out the
Seal Judgments which begin the Tribulation.
Pre-Tribulation,
Pre-millennial View
-Book of Revelation is to be taken literally.
-Next prophetic event is the rapture, seven year
Tribulation, Second Coming of Christ, Millennium,
GWT, and New Heaven and Earth.
-Churches are not in the Tribulation. Rev. 4-21.
DEFINITION OF TERMS.
Rapture
Taken from the words "caught up" in 1 Thessalonians 4:17.
"Rapture" is the derived from a Latin word “repere”
meaning "to catch up" or “snatched away in body or spirit.” It
is used to refer to when Christ returns to earth and takes His
bride (Rev. 21:2), which is made up of all saved people living
and dead since Acts 2, when the Church Age began.
This event is the resurrection of the believers in the who
will have lived in the dispensation of the Church Age only. (See
1 Thess. 4:13-18; 1 Cor. 15:51-52)
The Tribulation ( Daniel’s 70th Week)
This is the seven year period of time in which God will
again begin to work with Israel. It is referred to as the
"Daniel’s Seventh Week" based on the time table of Daniel
9:25-27. It begin after the Rapture.
It is the period when God will pour His wrath on earth
in the Seals, Trumpets and Bowl judgments described in Rev.
6:1-18:24. It is the time the Antichrist and the false prophet
will reign on earth.
It will also be a time of great evangelizing of the world
by the 144,000 saved Jews who accept Jesus as their
Messiah (Rev. 7:1-8, 14:1-5).
The Great Tribulation
The term “Great Tribulation” was used by
Christ to refer to the events years of the seven
year Tribulation.
“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was
not since the beginning of the world to this time,
no, nor ever shall be.” (Matthew 24:21)
The word “great” is an adjective and is
referring the magnitude of the events of these
seven years.
Second Coming
Christ will return to the earth visibly and will come to
purge the world of sinners and set up His Kingdom over
which He will reign for one thousand years (Acts 1:11,
Matt. 24:29-31, Rev. 19). The Second Coming is
divided into two parts taking place seven years apart.
The first part of the Second Coming is when Christ
comes for His bride at the Rapture. (1 Thess. 4:13-18; 1
Cor. 15:51-58)
At the end of the Tribulation Jesus will return and
destroy the Antichrist, the false prophet and remove all
the unsaved on the earth.
The Millennium
The word "Millennium" means one thousand
and stands for the one thousand year reign of
Christ on the Earth following the Great
Tribulation and the Second Coming of Christ.
After Christ returns to earth He will set up
His Kingdom in Jerusalem and then rule on earth
for one thousand years. It will be a time of
peace on earth with Satan and his evil angels
locked up in the "bottomless pit".
Pre-Millennium
The prefix "pre" added to the word
Millennium means “Before” the Millennium. This
is the position that the Rapture and the seven
year Tribulation and Second Coming of Christ
will happen before the Millennium. This biblical
view is based on a literal interpretation of
Scripture and sees the Rapture, Tribulation,
Second Coming and the Millennium as actual
prophet events in the future. This view is held
by fundamentalists and conservatives.
Pre-Tribulational
It means the rapture of the church is
"pre" (before) the Tribulational and will
occur before the seven year Great
Tribulation period when God brings the
various judgments on the Earth prior to
His Second Coming. This is the correct
view.
The Great White Throne Judgment
Jesus Christ is the Judge.
This is the final judgment of the
unsaved. This occurs after the Rapture,
the Tribulation and the Millennium.
The unsaved will be judged according
to their works and all will be cast into the
Lake of Fire for eternity.
The New Jerusalem
This is the beginning of eternity or the
eternal state of things. (See Rev. 21:1 22:19) The earth will be destroyed and
purged of all sin. Then the new order will
be set up with a new heaven and earth.
(See Isa. 65:17, 66:22, 2 Peter 3:13, Rev.
21:1) A New Jerusalem will be set up on
earth by Jesus Christ.
The New Heaven and Earth
After Satan’s final revolt at the end of
the Millennium, Revelation 21:1 states
that God will create a new heaven and
earth and the first earth will pass away.
The New Jerusalem and New Heaven
and Earth will be eternal and all the saved
will be with the Lord in this final kingdom
forever.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE BOOK OF
REVELATION
Title: Correct title is “the Revelation of
Jesus Christ.” It is falsely titled by some
the “Revelation of John or John the
Devine.”
 The word translated "revelation" is the
Greek word "apocalypse" and means, "a
manifestation, or to uncover, unveil or
disclose."

The Reason God Instructed
John to Write the Book.

Note the stated reason is, "to shew unto
His servants which must shortly come to
pass." Clearly, the book was written to
the "servants" of God which would include
all believers.
How did message come?

Verse 1, states that this Scripture came to John
“from” God “by” an angel (messenger). (Rev.
1:4, 9; 22:8)

John says he is on the aisle of Patmos a
prisoner. (Rev. 1:9) The Isle of Patmos
was a fifty mile square island located in
the Aegean Sea, southwest of Ephesus.
The Promise of the Book. (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.”
(Revelation 1:3)
"Blessings" can be found in the book
1. Challenge
 2. Comfort
 3. Cautiousness
 4. Calling
 5. Conquest
 6. Cherishing
 7. Conformity

1:3 (Read and follow)
14:13
16:15
19:9
20:6
22:7
22:14
THE TIME FRAME OF THE BOOK: "FOR
THE TIME IS AT HAND?" (Rev. 1:3)

Verse 1, states, "things which must
shortly come to past."
The word "time" means "season."
 So far this “season” has lasted 2000 years.
 However, Christ’s Second Coming is
presented always imminent.

The Book Begins with a Promise and
Ends with a Warning
(Rev. 1:3, 22:18)


Revelation 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.”
Revelation 22:18-19, “For I testify unto every man
that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If
any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto
him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any
man shall take away from the words of the book of this
prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book
of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things
which are written in this book.”
Are There Modern Prophets?
This verse is clear that there are no modern day
prophets because the Bible is complete and is
God's total and final Word or revelation to man.
A preacher or Bible teacher can "prophesy"
by teaching the revealed prophecies and
doctrines of the Bible, but God is not giving new
information that He has not previously given.
 This is the last Book of the sixty six books of the
Bible which is God’s whole and completed
revelation to man. (Rev. 22:18-19)

HISTORICAL INFORMATION
ABOUT THE BOOK.

Within the Book the writer claimed to be the
brother of those suffering persecution. He stated
his name is John in Revelation 1:1,4,9; 22:8.

The most substantiated evidence, both internal
and external place the time of the writing during
the time of the Roman Emperor Domitian. It was
Domitian who had John banished to the Isle of
Patmos. (Rev. 1:9) This would give the book a
date as early as 90 AD or later to 96 AD.

John states he is addressing the seven churches
of Asia. (Rev. 1:4)

The character of the seven churches spoken of
in the book very closely resemble that which
typified the various character and historic events
of churches down through history.

The Lords addresses to each of these churches
reveal the mind of Christ concerning
faithfulness and relationship of all churches to
false teachings and teachers.
Why did God use Symbolic
Language in the Book?

First, the prophecy about the future and is given to a
prophet in his own time. The prophet's understanding
of the future is limited by his knowledge which is
restricted to the time in which he is living.

The second reason God used symbols is that much of
what prophecy foretells regards to future nations. If
God had given the specifics of the future in detail, men
would have used the information to try and manipulate
history.

"Symbolic languages confuses unbelieving skeptics
without necessarily frustrating believing Christians."
End of the Introduction to the
Book of Revelation