Honestly, the book of Revelations has always scared me. Its not the dramatic images or haunting themes, but rather the wide range of opinions and ideas that it elicits. From the very beginning, Christians have differed over how to interpret this powerful book. To complicate matters even more, today there are plenty of people who claim to be experts; many of whom disagree with one another! So it is with great humility and some trepidation that we enter The End. Before we begin our study of Revelations, what are some big-picture questions that you have about this book?
6 comments:
In Rev. 4:1, God tells John to "Come up here". I've been taught that that is a picture of the Rapture, and because it comes prior to all the horrors of the Tribulation, means the Rapture will come before the Tribulation. Do you believe in a pre-Tribulation Rapture?
In Rev. 7:5-8, the tribes of Israel are listed saying that 12,000 people from each tribe will make up the 144,000 people who are saved out of the Tribulation. Why do you think the tribe of Dan is excluded? I've heard it theorized that maybe the Antichrist is from that tribe.
Who do you think the two witnesses from Rev. 11:3 are? I've heard they may be Elijah and Enoch, the only two people who never died, or Moses. Or they could be two Angels.
Do you think the curse mentioned in Rev. 22:3 is the curse of Genesis 3:14-19 being removed by God?
Let's see. It's a Book of prophecy about things that are yet to happen.
It uses a great deal of symbolism that is very difficult for me to understand. As you noted, some very bright people have spent a long time studying the book and they have significant differences in their understanding of it.
We have no idea when these things will happen and have no control over the events that will unfold.
I have a hard time seeing the importance and application to my life. And I'm honestly a bit intimidated by the difficulty and uncertainty of understanding it.
Jill, great comments and questions... I will get to these in due time. Keep on writing down your questions!
Jack, I can identify with your comment. It is intimidating and divisive in that so many have contradictory opinions on this book. Yet Jesus spoke often about The End. My hope is that we can gain a greater love for Christ and for how he decides to work out His plan in the world.
Jill, I don't believe that 4.1 is referring to a rapture. Only John is addressed in this passage, where as in the previous chapters, Jesus addresses the Church. Furthermore strong dispensationalists like John MacArthur and Walvoord of Dallas Theological Seminary, state that this passage doesn't refer to the rapture. Great question!
Post a Comment