The Revelation of Christ
An Overview of the Book of Revelation
God’s Battle Plan to Cleanse the Earth from Evil
Wayne J. Edwards, Pastor
In chapter 1:1, John said the purpose of his writing was to explain “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John, who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.”
- God sent an angel to the Apostle John, who was in exile on the Isle of Patmos, to reveal to him the things that will come to pass in the last days to bring this age to a close.
- In Revelation 1:3, John said, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.”
- In Revelation 22:7, John quoted Jesus as saying: “Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
The orginal recipients of this letter were the seven churches of Asia as listed in Revelation 2-3.
- While these were actual congregations that existed in that day, Jesus used the characteristics of these seven churches to address the level of spiritual maturity of every individual church of every age, as well as the level of spirituial maturity of “The Church” in the world during the whole church age.
- In verses 5-8, John assured the seven churches that, while he had penned the letter, the words were from the Triune God, but dedicated “Unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His blood.” So, the Book of Revelation is about the final events of this age that lead up to the second coming of Jesus Christ to this earth.
- John saw the Lord Jesus, in all of His glory, with seven stars in His right hand, which represented the seven churches, which represent “The Church” on earth from Pentecost to the Rapture.
- In verse 19, Jesus gave John the outline of the book:
- “The things which you have seen” – John’s vision of Jesus.
- “The things which are” – the things that were going on in the seven churches that represent the level of spiritual maturity in “The Church” for the last 2000 years.
- “The things that will take place after this” – the events that John described in chapters 4-22.
- The spiritual characteristics of the seven churches:
- Ephesus – the fallen church
- Smyrna – the fearful church
- Pergamos – the falterning church
- Thyatira – the false church
- Sardis – the fruitless church
- Philadelphia – the faithful church
- Laodicea – the fashionalble church
- At the end of chapter 3, Christ ends His message to the Church, and there is no other reference to the Church until the end of chapter 22, where John quotes Jesus saying, go back and remember what I said to the Church.
The things that will take place after the Church age – Revelation 4-22.
- The Rapture of the Church – Revelation 4:1-11 – Vs. 1 – “After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”
- John’s description of the elders around the throne of God represents the Church; those whom the Lord ransomed, redeemed, and raptured, dressed in white robes, receiving crowns of gold, and worshipping the Lord God Almighty.
- The Lord Jesus receiving the seven-sealed scroll from God the Father – Revelation 5:1-14 – Vs. 7 – “Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.” That scroll contained the events that will cleanse the earth from the curse of sin and all of the evil that curse has produced for all eternity.
- White Horse: Rider with a bow, given a crown, goes out conquering. This is the introduction of the Antichrist.
- Red Horse: Rider takes peace from the earth, causing people to slay one another (war).
- Black Horse: Rider with scales, symbolizing severe famine and rationing of food.
- Pale/Ashen Horse: Rider named Death, with Hades following, given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine, pestilence, and wild beasts.
- Souls Under the Altar: The voices of martyrs slain for God’s word crying out for justice.
- Cosmic Disturbances: A great earthquake, the sun turns black, the moon turns blood-red, stars fall, and people hide.
- Silence in Heaven: A half-hour of silence followed by the introduction of the seven trumpets, which unleash further judgments.
- The seventh seal is divided into seven “trumpets,” or seven “plagues” which lead to Christ’s return.
- First Trumpet (Rev 8:7): Hail and fire mixed with blood fall on the earth, burning one-third of the trees and grass.
- Second Trumpet (Rev 8:8-9): A huge, burning mountain is thrown into the sea, turning a third of the sea to blood, killing sea creatures, and destroying ships.
- Third Trumpet (Rev 8:10-11): A great star (Wormwood) falls, poisoning a third of the rivers and springs, making them bitter.
- Fourth Trumpet (Rev 8:12): A third of the sun, moon, and stars are darkened, causing a third of the day and night to lack light.
- Fifth Trumpet (First Woe) (Rev 9:1-11): A star opens the Abyss, releasing demonic locusts that torment people without God’s seal for five months.
- Sixth Trumpet (Second Woe) (Rev 9:13-21): A massive army from the East kills one-third of humanity.
- Seventh Trumpet (Rev 11:15-19): This trumpet announces the coming of God’s kingdom, followed by thunder, lightning, earthquakes, and the “seven last plagues” (bowls of wrath).
- The seventh trumpet announces the return of Jesus Christ to earth as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords – Revelation 11-22 – 11:15 – “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”
- First Bowl (Land): Festering sores on people bearing the mark of the beast and worshipping its image.
- Second Bowl (Sea): The sea turns to blood, killing all living things in it.
- Third Bowl (Rivers/Springs): Fresh water turns to blood, and the inhabitants of the earth have blood to drink.
- Fourth Bowl (Sun): The sun scorches people with intense heat.
- Fifth Bowl (Throne of the Beast): Darkness covers the beast’s kingdom, and people suffer from the painful sores.
- Sixth Bowl (Euphrates River): The Euphrates River dries up, preparing the way for kings from the East, leading to the battle of Armageddon.
- Seventh Bowl (Air): A great earthquake, cities fall, islands disappear, and massive hailstones fall from the sky, followed by “It is done!”
- The Lord’s victory over sin and Satan, and His vindication over those who refused to believe in Him.
- Chapter 19: Christ’s Return & Judgment
- Hallelujah! The heavenly hosts rejoice as Babylon (the corrupt world system) is judged.
- The Marriage Supper: Believers are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb (Jesus).
- The Rider on the White Horse: Jesus returns as King of Kings, leading heavenly armies to defeat the Beast (Antichrist) and False Prophet, casting them into the Lake of Fire.
- Chapter 20: Satan’s Binding & Judgments
- Millennium: Satan is bound for 1,000 years, during which Christ reigns on Earth with resurrected believers.
- Satan’s Release & Final Defeat: After 1,000 years, Satan is briefly released, gathers armies, but is swiftly defeated and thrown into the Lake of Fire.
- Great White Throne Judgment: All the dead are judged; those not found in the Book of Life are cast into the Lake of Fire.
- Chapters 21-22: New Heaven, New Earth, New Jerusalem, New Creation: God creates a new heaven and earth, with the New Jerusalem descending from heaven.
- God’s Dwelling: God dwells directly with His people; there is no more death, mourning, crying, or pain.
- The City: The New Jerusalem is described with glorious features (gold, precious stones, no temple, light from God).
- The River of Life: A river flows from God’s throne with the Tree of Life, bearing fruit for the healing of nations.
- Final Invitation: Jesus offers the water of life freely; the book ends with warnings against adding to or taking from its words.
