UNDERSTANDING THE THEOLOGY OF REVELATION 3.7.07 WEEK 3 A PICTURE OF SUFFERING AND EVIL A BRIEF RECAP 1. My #1 goal help you to be able to read, understand and apply Revelation on your own 2. Looking at Revelation through theological themes, not as a calendar. 3. See Revelation zoomed-out rather than zoomed-in 4. Christ is the focus of Revelation Did anyone go through any of the study on the picture of Jesus from last week on their own? 5. You can download notes from previous weeks at my blog (www.mikegoldsworthy.com) and when the audio is available, you will be able to get it from that same place. TWO VIEWS OF HOW TO UNDERSTAND REVELATION Each week, I want to give you a really brief overview of different views on how to understand Revelation. This isn t meant to get you to decide on one of these to believe, but more to open up our eyes to recognize the vast interpretations of Revelation that exist amongst orthodox Christians who believe the Bible. These won t give you a complete understanding of the different views, but enough to understand what they believe, where they re coming from and to realize that we can hold different views of Revelation that are biblically based. Dispensational Premillennialism My guess is that this is the view you ve probably heard the most about. You find it in Calvary Chapel s teachings, Hal Lindsey s The Late Great Planet Earth, and it is the basis for the theology behind the Left Behind series. It is a relatively new theological movement, particularly within the last 200 years Revelation can be interpreted as a calendar of future events, which culminates in the End Times The Tribulation is a future event that is 7 years long and will commence with the signing of a covenant between the nation of Israel and the European Antichrist There is a twofold coming of Christ which includes first a secret Rapture of the church, and then after the Tribulation, the actual, physical return of Christ There is a future temple in Jerusalem, which is set up for Jewish worship and the offering of sacrifices according to the Old Testament specifications There is a future, literal, earthly millennial kingdom that begins after Christ returns
Some Questions for this View Did the authors of the New Testament assume the 2 nd coming of Christ as 2 separate events? Does this build on a consistent New Testament theology (rebuilt temple, sacrificial systems Hebrews 8)? What is the basis in this view for what is understood literally and what is figurative? Is the focus of this view on Jesus or on the End Times? How do you deal with the New Testament writers declaring in several places that they are in the last days? Historic Premillennialism Premillennialism is the doctrine stating that after the Second Coming of Christ, he will reign for a thousand years over the earth before the final consummation of God s redemptive purpose in the new heavens and the new earth of the Age to Come Dispensationalism forms its eschatology by a literal interpretation of the Old Testament and then fits the New Testament into it. A nondispensational eschatology forms its theology from the explicit teachings of the New Testament there are unavoidable indications that the Old Testament promises to Israel are fulfilled in the Christian Church. George Eldon Ladd, The Meaning of the Millennium: Four Views The church replaces Israel for many of the Old Testament prophecies, but not all of them There is a final salvation of ethnic Israel through faith in Jesus In terms of prophecies, they see the New Testament interpreting the Old (rather than the other way around) They would agree with a future, literal, earthly reign of Christ for 1,000 years Although, they reject the twofold coming of Christ and focus only on the 2 nd Coming in that regard Some Questions for this View Does this take seriously enough Christ s reign now (the already/not yet of the Kingdom)? How do you determine what is meant for Israel and what is meant for the Church if some, but not all prophecies apply to one or the other? Is a literal, future, earthly reign of 1,000 years consistent with the rest of New Testament theology? SUFFERING AND EVIL IN REVELATION Group Discussion: Get into groups of 4 or 5. Take a minute to meet each other, and then read the following passages and discuss the questions below. This group discussion time will take a little bit longer than the ones that we have done in previous weeks 1. Read Revelation 1:9 together
2. John talks about 3 things that he is a companion or partner in with those who he is writing to. What are those three things? 3. If he is a companion to those 3 things with those who he is writing to, are those 3 things a present reality to them or a future reality? 4. Read Revelation 2:9-10. Is the tribulation/suffering that is referred to something in the future or in the present for those to whom Revelation is originally addressed? 5. Read Revelation 7:9-14. With the backdrop of what we ve already discovered concerning tribulation/suffering in Revelation, what significance do you believe this passage has for its original audience? -------------------- what if Revelation is not viewed as a calendar but as a template? What if we are able to lay its principles over any period of suffering?...that s why this book has perpetual relevance. Wherever there is tragedy or suffering, persecuted Christians or rampant evil, this books weaves its way into the life of the church, reminding God s people of their security in Christ, the seriousness of their spiritual warfare, and the wondrous sovereignty of our mighty God. ~ Mark Moore, How to Dodge a Dragon 1. Revelation is a subversive message to a persecuted church Revelation 1:10 Why does he include the day this happens? What is the significance of that? In Asia Minor, there was a monthly celebration called, Emperor s Day, which celebrated the divinity of the emperor Christians refused to worship the emperor, and celebrated a different day to honor the true King Lord is the Greek word, kyriakos, which was a term used to designate what belonged to Caesar Right at the beginning, John is setting up a subversive message Rome grew progressively more hostile to the movement of Jesus, and Revelation was written to the church to encourage, to inspire, and to call for perseverance in the midst of the hostile culture around them. ~ Mike Erre, The Jesus of Suburbia Nero - Roman Emperor from AD 54-68
Before killing the Christians, Nero used them to amuse the people. Some were dressed in furs, to be killed by dogs. Others were crucified. Still others were set on fire early in the night, so that they might illumine it. ~ Tacitus (1 st Century Historian), Annals - Nero passed an edict against Christians, allowing for their persecution, and declaring Christianity illegal Domitian (Sometimes referred to as the second Nero) - Roman Emperor from AD 81-96 - Roman Emperors or Caesars were considered gods on earth - In trying to revitalize Roman faith, Domitian created the Imperial Cult of Domitian, with temples and other places of worship - In Ephesus (one of the churches John is writing to) around AD 90, Domitian dedicated a statue of himself that was over 20 feet high - Roman governors forced citizens to participate in adherence to the cult in order to prove their loyalty and patriotism - Christians were faced with a choice to worship Domitian or to lose their rights and privileges as citizens - Around AD 89/90, Ephesus issued a coin that conformed Domitian to the image of Zeus - There are some records of cities in Asia Minor (the area where John s churches are located), where emperor worship became required in order to buy food - You would burn incense to a statue or image of Caesar and then would receive a mark to indicate that you had done so - Without that mark, you could not buy food - That mark became a symbol that you had bowed down and worshipped Caesar as god - Also, the imperial seal or mark (same Greek word as in Rev 13:16-17) was stamped on commercial documents. It was impossible to buy or sell something without handling coins, shipping bills and other documents that all declared Caesar as god. Revelation 13:16-17 What is John saying to his original audience? What relevance does this have for us today, beyond looking for an actual mark on hands/foreheads? The gospel of Jesus Christ is more political than anyone imagines, but in a way that no one gueses. ~ Eugene Peterson, Reversed Thunder Genesis 1:21 Revelation 3:1 What does Genesis tell us about this beast?
Daniel 7:3-8 Revelation 13:1-2 John later interprets some of this image, and by doing so gives an interpretation to Revelation 13 as well as Daniel 7 Revelation 17:9 Rome is called the city on seven hills Revelation 17:10-11 Notice the phrase, the beast who was, now is not What is John comparing the beast to with this phrase? Nero s death was a significant event for Christians and the Roman empire When he died, a myth circulated that he was coming back Could John be making statements about Nero and his relationship to the church? If John envisioned the Antichrist as a new Nero, this does not imply that his vision was relevant only in his century. He speaks of an oppressor after the current one, one that embodies evil, as Nero did. Because he is recycling older images like Nero the issue is more the pattern than the person ~Craig Keener, NIV Application Study Bible: Revelation Revelation 17:12 Most likely they [10 kingdoms] are viewed as Rome s client kingdoms; in the end, Rome s empire will collapse and turn on the one with whom they have committed prostitution. Craig Keener, NIV Application Bible Commentary: Revelation Beast of the Sea = imperial power Revelation 13:7 John 19:11-16 What happens when God s people follow a government blindly? Is John making a commentary on our relationship to governments? As a side note Revelation 13 was one of the most studied passages by the Confessing Church during Nazi Germany Revelation 13:11 What does it look like, what does it sound like? Revelation 13:14-15 Could John be making political commentary on recent events?
Can you possibly see any parallels today religion/governments/leaders that look like a lamb, but speak like a dragon? 2. The real enemy is not Rome or other beliefs or specific people, but Satan Revelation 12:9 Revelation 12:17 The dragon is the source or stands behind the other beasts Revelation 13:1 Revelation 13:11 Have you heard other Romes declared as the enemy by Christians today? Ephesians 6:12 We wage war against the dragon, but we prefer more obvious targets. Why? Because we can see the carnage when we hit them. It s easier to think my enemy is my ex-spouse, or my kids or Madonna If there were visible differences between those who call themselves followers of Jesus and those who don t, we might not spend as much time picketing and legislating. It would be obvious to all that we have something better, something found nowhere else. ~ Mike Erre, The Surburban Jesus Revelation 12:10-11 What is the image of how Christ followers gain victory? The Jesus of Suburbia pg 147 Jesus conquered by being conquered. He conquered with sacrificial love. We conquer with the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony, loving not our lives even unto death. ~ Peter Hiett, Eternity Now! We ll continue looking at a picture of evil and suffering in Revelation next week, looking at other aspects that are addressed *Also, the last week for the class will be March 21 st. I messed up my scheduling and will be out of town on the 28 th, which was supposed to be our final week.