Series Introduction
Revelation is the only book in the Bible that starts by proclaiming the God’s blessing on those who read and take to heart what is said. By reading, rightly understanding and then acting on this book in our lives we will receive God’s blessings! Rather than being afraid of Revelation, as so many Christians and ministers seem to be, we should be taking it as the most exciting letter about the gospel: through Revelation we receive all God’s blessing through Jesus. Revelation is a gospel book. It’s an exciting book – and if God expects that we will apply it then God must expect that we’ll be able to understand it. So 2 Timothy 3:16-17 applies to the book of Revelation as it does to any other passage…
2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the person of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Revelation is a letter of great drama – exciting, dramatic events portrayed… dramatically! It’s the Saturday afternoon melodrama. It’s a big picture book, not a puzzle book – we don’t have to understand every detail. But more than just a book – it’s an epic tale. Think of Revelation as one of the great Hollywood blockbusters – with a massive budget and incredible special effects and the very best cast and crew and the greatest director of all time. Revelation gathers together all the threads of the story, gathers the threads of salvation history and brings it to cataclysmic ending, as we reach the final great battle between good and evil – a battle won on the cross, a battle that never occurs in Revelation because Jesus has already defeated death and sin. Revelation is a huge movie that invites us to cheer on the good guys and love the hero, and boo and hiss as the evil one and his minions as they take the stage. We join in with the chorus of the heavenly choir, we shudder at the descriptions of evil and tyranny, the end of the world, and we share in the hope of heaven and the lamb ruling for eternity. Revelation is a letter that should hit us emotionally as well as mentally and spiritually. We should be able to hear the terror in their voices and smell the fear…
Revelation 6:15-17 “Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” (NIV)
Who can stand? Revelation is not some mystical journey through wacky images but a clear vision of Christ’s rule and his love and mercy towards us, of who can stand in the face of God’s anger, and the security and salvation we can receive at the hands of the king of all creation.
Sermons as mp3’s can be downloaded from http://jacsermons.mypodcast.com/index.html or you can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes with this link… http://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/jamberoo-anglican-church-sermons/id383796568. We have started video introductions using youtube at http://www.youtube.com/user/dvc1964.
Revelation Introduction – And I Saw Heaven Opened
Series introduction – Revelation
Being totally honest – Revelation is a strange book. For many Christians Revelation is number one on the top-ten list of books not to read. For others Revelation is the only book to read – and people come up with all sorts of weird theology they claim as the message of Revelation. We see it regularly in the news – someone claiming the end of the world is here and Armageddon has begun – from the book of Revelation. As a teenager there were all sorts of strange little comic book tracts about the end of the world, taken from Revelation. There are books about the Rapture, movies that look almost demonic, claims about the battle of Armageddon, the devil, the lake of fire, the angel army, the 1000 year reign of Christ – and so many more it hurts my head! Revelation gets a bad name either way and for so many Christians that has meant we decide to keep it at the end, out of harm’s way – out of mind out of sight! But I want to show you that Revelation is a wonderful exciting book for normal people. It is understandable for normal people – as opposed to understandable for apocalyptic theologians – that it makes sense in a world where so often very few things make sense. I want to show you that it’s the most exciting and encouraging book in the Bible, that it speaks at length about the things we are passionate about.
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 1 Introduction 2011
Revelation 1 – I See The King
Revelation is a strange book with a bad name – but it’s far more understandable than people make out. It is maybe the most exciting book in the Bible because it speaks at length about things we’re passionate about – not Armageddon and the 1000 year reign of Christ so much as the victory of Jesus won on the cross – that’s the basic theme of the Revelation, the gospel of Jesus. As we deal with the weirdness – the beasts, and numbers, colours, dragons, robes and creatures, trumpets and angels, scarlet women, great cities, battles and armies – those lurid images of the end times – we have to focus on what revelation focuses on – Jesus the King. It is written in a particular style – apocalyptic literature – picture language – it’s designed with a sense of the big picture rather than instructing us to interpret every little thing. As Christ Jesus he stands in glory as the king of all creation we are meant to be impressed.
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 1
Revelation 2 – Postcards from Prison
As we consider the Church of Ephesus and the wider ancient church and we turn our eyes to ourselves – what would Christ Jesus say to us? If we think Jesus would simply say – you’re doing great – no worries… then we are probably fooling ourselves. To the ancient church Jesus reminds them of his might and power, and how pathetic the worldly powers are. He demands they repent – of a lack of love, of mediocrity, of false teaching and godless behaviour and he repeatedly calls on them to resist temptation, to resist the world and to stand against false gods. He encourages them to conquer, to follow in his footsteps and he promises that those who overcome in this life will receive the crown of life, will eat from the tree of life, will be delivered from hell and will share in his rule over the nations.
What would he say to our church? What encouragement would he give? What demands for repentance would he make? Are we committed – to godliness, to love, to faith, to the scriptures? Are we committed to pressing on and to the gospel witness? Are we committed to the kingdom above all else – or to ourselves?
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 2
Revelation 3 – Postcards from Prison – Part 2
As we consider the churches in Asia Minor and the wider ancient church and we turn our eyes to ourselves – what would Christ Jesus say to us? If we think Jesus would simply say – you’re doing great – no worries… then we are probably fooling ourselves. To the ancient church Jesus reminds them of his might and power, and how pathetic the worldly powers are. He demands they repent – of a lack of love, of mediocrity, of false teaching and godless behaviour and he epeatedly calls on them to resist temptation, to resist the world and to stand against false gods. He encourages them to conquer, to follow in his footsteps and he promises that those who overcome in this life will receive the crown of life, will eat from the tree of life, will be delivered from hell and will share in his rule over the nations.
What would he say to our church? What encouragement would he give? What demands for repentance would he make? Are we committed – to godliness, to love, to faith, to the scriptures? Are we committed to pressing on and to the gospel witness? Are we committed to the kingdom above all else – or to ourselves?
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 3
Revelation 4
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 4
Revelation 5
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 5
Revelation 6
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 6
Revelation 7
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 7
Revelation 8-9
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 8-9
Revelation 10-11
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 10-11
Revelation 12-13
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 12-13
Revelation 13-14
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 13-14
Revelation 14-15
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 14-15
Revelation 16
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 16
Revelation 16a
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 16a
Revelation 17-18
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 17-18
Revelation 19
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’ Revelation 19
Revelation 21-22
To save mp3 to computer right click link and ‘save target as…’Revelation 21-22
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