There are many things about the Book of Revelation which
are not clear. Good, Bible believing,
Jesus following, smart, gifted Christian teachers, writers, preachers, and
church members disagree about the interpretation of Revelation at many
levels. We disagree about the timing of
fulfillment, the degree of symbolism, the specific meaning of many of the
symbols, and much more. I am not
claiming to have some super insight which will settle all these
disagreements. What I do have is a clear
understanding about a major purpose of the Book of Revelation.
James tells us that we are to “be doers of the Word, and
not hearers only” (James 1:22). How do
we “do” what we “hear” in the Book of Revelation? The answer becomes clear when we understand
the purpose of Revelation. I’m not
claiming this is the only purpose, but it is a clear purpose and one that is relevant
to every Christian living on this planet.
Here it is:
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Through the Book of Revelation our Lord
encourages all of us, His followers, to persevere in the way of the cross.
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What Do I Mean by “The
Way of the Cross”?
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up
their cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24 NIV).
Jesus won His great victory for us by the most surprising
method imaginable: He allowed Himself to
be crucified. But crucifixion is not the
end of His story. His suffering and death lead to resurrection, victory and
glory.
Jesus invites all of us to join Him in glory. But to get there He asks us to take the same
path He took. This path involves making
choices which lead to sacrifice and suffering.
He does not offer us any other path.
The path of sacrifice and suffering for the cause of
Christ is the right path, but it is not an easy path. The world, our flesh, and the Devil try to
pull us off this path by luring us with false promises of pleasure, safety, or
comfort. When “pulling off the path”
doesn’t work, these same enemies try to push us off the path of Christ through threats,
our own fears, and outright attacks of all kinds. To stay on the path we need encouragement, and
lots of it. God gives us encouragement
through His Word (Romans 15:40). His
Word includes The Book of Revelation, which is full of this encouragement to
persevere on the hard path that leads to glory.
How does the Book
of Revelation help us to persevere on this difficult road?
God speaks to us through John in Revelation in many ways
to encourage us to stay on the path of temporary sacrifice and suffering which
leads to eternal joy and glory. Here are
five of the ways we are encouraged:
1. We are called
to join a fellowship of others who are suffering for the same great cause.
John identifies himself this way:
I, John, your brother and companion in the
suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the
island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation
1:9 NIV)
The human author of Revelation is not asking us to do
anything which he himself has not been doing.
He also reminds us that while we often feel like a tiny remnant in this
age, one day we will be part of a great multitude of people who are so glad
that they chose to follow Jesus (Revelation 7:9).
More important than inviting us to join himself on the
path, or even inviting us to be part of this great multitude, John reminds us
that our Lord Himself is among those who suffered for God’s cause (Revelation
5:6). When we choose to suffer for God,
we are in really good company!
2. In Revelation,
our Lord explicitly encourages His people to persevere in suffering.
Do not be afraid of what you are about to
suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and
you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of
death, and I will give you life as your victor's crown.
(Revelation 2:10 NIV)
3. Through John’s
vision, we see the real nature of the world that tempts us.
The world can appear good and desirable. But through Revelation we see that the world
system which lures us is comparable to monstrous beasts and harlots deserving
of wrath. Seeing the spiritual reality
behind temptation to compromise with the world makes compromising look a lot
less attractive!
4. Revelation
reminds us that God is in control
When we are down here on earth in the midst of chaotic-feeling
painful realities, we can lose track of Who is in control. When we read Revelation we see over and over
again that God is on His great, majestic throne. Powerful angels, angel armies, and nature all
obey His commands. Satan and his angels
are no match for God Almighty! When we
choose the way of the cross, we are choosing the winning side!
5. Revelation
tells us how it all turns out
In this present age, it often appears that those who compromise
with the world are doing great, while we who are faithful to Jesus get trampled
on. There’s truth in that, and
Revelation does not pretend otherwise.
But this situation is temporary.
In the end things turn out really, really badly for those who chose to
follow the ways of this world. And
things turn out wonderfully good, far beyond our ability to imagine, for those
who have followed Jesus in the way of the cross.
I’ve only scratched the surface! Read Revelation. You’ll be blessed. And one of the blessings you will receive is
encouragement to persevere in the way of the cross.
Applications in
Our Lives
I want to close with some applications for our
lives. When we think about the way of
the cross, it is true this may include things like being imprisoned or even
being killed for Jesus. But for most Christians
it does not include these “extreme applications”. It is vital to see how “the way of the cross”
applies to people like you and me who have not been put in prison for
Christ. Every disciple is called
to walk the way of the cross, but the specific applications vary greatly. Here are some examples of the way of the
cross:
1. Choosing to be
a faithful husband and father instead of chasing after pleasures, “fun”,
wealth, and power in this world.
2. Giving up your
own time and dreams and freedom to be a caregiver to those who need extra
care. This would include mothers of
young children, those who care for the sick, and those who are caring for
elderly family members, among others.
3. Being a
faithful church member who gives up some of the few precious hours you have
left after work and family obligations to worship and serve in your local
church and gives up some of your hard earned money to support God’s work even through
your own family budget is always tight.
4. Taking a stand
for truth and righteousness which may cost you some relationships or even your
job, or in some places may land you in jail or cost you your life.
5. Leaving your “comfort
zone” to serve God in some place or way that involves sacrifice. Sometimes this involves crossing the oceans,
other times it involves crossing the street.
There is still a lot of mystery in Revelation. But I hope you can now see that a major
purpose of Revelation is to help us make the hard choices God calls us to make
as we follow Jesus in the way of the cross.
In this way, Revelation is harmonious with the rest of the Bible. Read it and find courage!
Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .
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