Revelation 7: 9-12, Matthew 24: 3-14
We have done a whistle stop journey through the Bible - creation, Tower of Babel, Moses, King David, Daniel, Jesus himself and today we come to the last book, the book of Revelation. Does anyone read it for bedtime reading? I would be surprised, it is quite a challenging book.
C S Lewis’ Narnia story, The Lion, the witch and the wardrobe reveal another realm entered through a wardrobe. The book of Revelation is also a portal to another realm, it gives us an insight into heaven, a glimpse of God’s ultimate plan for the end of time.
The word revelation, comes from the Greek word, apocalypse, meaning, unveiling. The book of Revelation draws back the curtain so that we can see what is beyond.
Before we dive into it, we need to look at the setting and the style of the writing.
Firstly the setting. It is thought to have been written around 90 A.D., by John, who was forced from his home and banished to the island of Patmos. It was a time of high persecution for the church, with many people being killed for their faith. This was a period when for peoples’ amusement, Christians were fed to the lions in the arena. While on the island of Patmos, John had a series of profound visions, and this is where the book comes from. In one of the visions he saw a door opening into heaven, and saw a glorious throne, and this was part of our first reading . (Read it with me.) There was a great multitude of people that no one could count …standing before the throne. They cried out in a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!“ (Rev 9.9-10, see also Rev ch 4).
God the Father and Jesus, the sacrificial lamb, reign from heaven, and their reign extends over all of creation. John‘s world was in a mess and our world is in a mess too - yet whatever happens, and despite what happens, God is reigning, is ruling over it all. John believed this through the visions, despite the persecutions, and we need to remember that too despite the awfulness we see. Jesus is not only our friend and saviour, he is also the boss and holding on to that fact helps us.
Now the style of the book. It is apocalyptic writing, speaking of the end times, with a variety of images and symbols to help us engage with things which are not of this world. Firstly, let’s think about numbers. The number seven in Jewish theology is the number of perfection, of completion. It echoes the understanding that God completed the world in seven days.
Therefore God’s purposes are described in sets of seven; seven golden lamp stands, seven stars, seven angels, seven plagues, seven bowls of judgement, seven trumpets of warning, seven flaming torches of lightning, which are the seven spirits of God, seven seals around the scroll, a scroll that represents God’s plan for the world . The scroll that only Jesus Christ can unlock and open, only he is worthy to do that, only he is the one who can bring God’s great plan to completion.
Then there is the number 12, symbolising the 12 tribes in the old Testament and the 12 apostles in the new Testament. Linking these together there are 24 elders before the throne worshipping God, representative leaders of all God’s people, old and new. (Rev ch 4 -5). Multiply 12 by 12 and you get 144, multiply that by 1000 which in Greek is the word, mega, and you get 144,000. Symbolically, this means a huge number of people, affirmed by our reading this morning, a great multitude that no one could count. So when the number 144,000 is used to describe those who are sealed and those who have Jesus’ and the Father’s names written on their foreheads, it is not a literal number, it is a vast number of people, which is contrary to what Jehovah witnesses think. (Rev 7.4, 14.1-3).
There are descriptions of strange creatures some of them quite frightening and perplexing - The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. (Rev 5.6); the red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads (Rev 12.3). Again these are symbolic and like political cartoons, the exaggeration of their features is there to make a point. It may seem confusing and distracting but do not despair. The big idea of the book of Revelation is that, although we may not understand it, God and the good are going to win.
The book of Revelation is the conclusion to the whole bible story. Its final chapters give us a glimpse of eternity, and they point as forward. There is a sense of “out with the old and in with the new.” Right back in the book of Genesis, the Tower of Babel represented a symbol of human pride and rebellion against God, and is an ancient reference to the city of Babylon. In Revelation, 18.16-17, this city is destroyed and laid waste in a single hour. This verse symbolises the fragility of human structures, of reliance on wealth and ourselves, and says very clearly, just like sandcastles built on the seashore, those things will disappear. God’s judgement will come upon this world and clear away all the dross, all the rubbish, all the lies and deceit, the greed and selfishness, the corruption and violence, the abuse and deliberate harm.
God will then bring in a new heaven and a new earth. This is a spectacular vision. The whole of creation, the whole cosmos, will be made new. The Eden paradise with which God started humanity’s involvement in this world will be restored, and God himself will come and dwell among human beings. This is a huge transition. In the time of Moses, God met with him alone on Mount Sinai. Then God appeared as a cloud in the Tent of the Tabernacle, and similarly in the Holy of Holies in the temple that Solomon built. After the day of Pentecost, God chose to be in the bodies of all Christians, in your body and in my body. In the future with the advent of the new earth, God will be visibly present in all the earth for all to see and enjoy. This is our sure and certain hope. God with us for all time.
This new earth will be radically different from what we experience now. There will be no more sickness, or death, no racism, no wars, no violence. Humanity will be one. What a beautiful image, a wonderful hope to hold on to.
The final chapter of the Book of Revelation brings us full circle with the vision of the tree of life. That tree that was there in the garden of Eden, now reappears next to the river of the water of life. A river that will flow from the new city of Jerusalem, and leaves of that tree will be for the healing of the nations. And we certainly need that healing.
This is God’s final purposes for humanity. So what do we do with this knowledge? How does it affect us now? In our Gospel reading, Jesus painted a stark picture of the approach to the end times. When you look over the history of the last 2000 years there have been many occasions when life was grim and desperate and people thought the end times were coming, but life has continued. And will continue until the Father declares that it is indeed the end. In the mean time we have to live trusting God the Father knows what he is doing and has a purpose in it all. Knowing God’s ultimate plan of a new heaven and a new earth helps us in this.
Imagine for a moment that you and a friend are watching a football match on the television and you know the final score, but your friend does not. Your team is struggling and losing and there seems no hope of winning. Your friend gets quite distressed and upset but you know that in the final moments your team will turn the game around and will win and so you are at peace, despite the current score. The Book of Revelation teaches us that in the end God and good will win. We were created to rely on God, to have a relationship with God. This runs like a golden thread from the garden of Eden and throughout the Bible. That is God’s will and purpose for us in the here and now, a relationship made possible through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, an act by God that shows us that we are vitally important to him, that he has not, and never will abandon us. So when we look around at the awful things happening in the world, we need to encourage each other to focus on God, to praise him and thank him for who he is and for his ultimate plans for humanity, plans in which God will live among us, will be our next door neighbour.
The Church of England Morning Prayer has a lovely opening prayer, which i find really helpful. Let’s pray.
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all,
to you be glory and praise for ever.
You founded the earth in the beginning
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
In the fullness of time you made us in your image,
and in these last days you have spoken to us
in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh.
As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us
let the light of your love always shine in our hearts,
your Spirit ever renew our lives
and your praises ever be on our lips.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever. Amen.