Participants 3
Discussion Questions
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What advice would you give a new Christian who wants to read the book of Revelation?
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8 Replies
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I think the most important thing to keep in mind when reading Revelations is historical context. The way we perceive the images and visions being presented would not be how those of the seven churches of Asia would. To best understand Revelations, some research and understanding of the area and time period are needed.
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I would let them know that the book of Revelation can be very confusing because it contains a lot of symbolism.
It is a book of prophecy, things yet to come. These prophecies were shared by the apostle John and the prophets Ezekiel and Daniel (although the book of the Bible is written by the apostle John).
There are several interpretations for the book of Revelation, this tells me that even highly educated theologians are not completely sure how to interpret the scripture. However, one message remains clear…Jesus is coming back soon and He will have the victory…and He will make all things new. -
Don’t try to read more into the book than can be understood from the cultural and biblical explanations found in other parts of the Scriptures. Also remember that some of the images are representations of people, things or events and are not literal while other portions like the first couple of chapters dealing with the seven churches are to be taken literal as well as symbolic.
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I would say to get a really good study guide to go with it or to get with a group that is going to study it together. I don’t recommend it for a brand new Christian because it might just confuse them and cause them to question their faith
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I think that my advice would be the same as with any Scripture: pray, pray, pray and listen, listen, listen!
Revelation is a very special book, and is filled with trippy symbols and images, but with the help of the Holy Spirit, and with the other Scriptures, we can get a clearer picture of the redemption plan – and it is awesome!
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What new things about interpreting the book of Revelation did you learn from this lesson?
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7 Replies
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One thing that reframed my thinking was the clarification on Jesus telling his people not be lukewarm. We automatically assume being on fire/hot for God is the good and being cold is turn away from Christ. Instead, to be hot is to be therapeutic through our faith and to be cold is to be refreshingly cold.
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From this lesson I learned that there are four different ways that people interpret the book of Revelation.
I really enjoyed reading the video transcript after watching, it helped me to dissect and revisit the analysis portion of this lesson on Revelation (I read it multiple times). I gathered new learning in the sections on “Readership, Circumstances, and Date”.
I was reminded that Revelation was corroborated by the prophecies of Ezekiel and Daniel.
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I found it more confusing then anything.
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I really appreciated the reminder that this was indeed a letter written to people who were expected to understand it. What must those people have been like, and what would their understanding have been?
I also appreciate the caution that we can’t expect that it’s just a way to interpret the news. That said, I think that it is clear that this was also written for us, here now, and not only seven historical Churches of ancient Turkey. It is interesting that it is stereoscopic in being specific for them and also useful for us now! -
To be open to the different views of the rapture and the millennium and the tribulation. I have always been given to understand one point of view, dismissingdifferent points of view. I am now open to those.