6 keys to understanding Revelation

Read Revelation 1.

1. Many have shied away from this book thinking that it was full of hidden truth and too hard to understand.  The opposite is true.  Revelation means to reveal, to expose, or to unveil.  The title is "The Revelation", singular.  When someone adds an "s" on the end of the title, it is because they view the book as being about events.  

2.  The focus is of the book is found in the opening five words: "The revelation of Jesus Christ".  While reading and studying The Revelation, we should never lose sight of who Jesus is, what is He doing, and what He will be doing in the future.

3. John wrote down what "God gave him", "by sending his angel" "to bear witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ."  These chapters and their descriptions are not the Apostle's opinions but the very word of God.  People who ignore this book do so at their own peril.

4. It is the only one of the sixty-six books of the Bible to promise a blessing for "the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy" to others in preaching or teaching.  In addition, it also promises a blessing to those who listen and take heed to what is written.

How many Christians and churches have missed out on these blessings for failing to read and study this book!

5. While seeking to understand these 22 chapters, one must maintain consistency in Biblical interpretation.
-Every passage has a historical context.  John received this content about 95 A.D.  The initial readers were seven actual churches of Asia Minor listed in chapters 2 and 3.
-The people, places, and future events are to be taken literally.  Jesus is real.  The seven churches were real congregations.  The things that John was allowed to see in the future will literally take place.  The promise of Jesus to return is guaranteed.
-Grammar is crucial to understanding Revelation.  Words have meaning.  God does not waste words.  John's descriptions of what he saw was written in the best way he could, given his first century context.  In chapter one, he used comparative words to describe the appearance of Jesus.  That does not diminish the literal facts at all.  And, how would a person in John's day communicate seeing a jet plane and missiles in a world war?
- Error and much false teaching has resulted from lifting verses out of context and trying to spiritualize or even dismiss what the word of God states.  

6. The point of the book is this: God has a plan for this world and He will fulfill His plan.  Revelation is not a separate book but a culmination of the Bible.  Jesus will return to put down all His enemies and establish His earthly kingdom.  There will be rewards for those who faithfully follow Jesus.  There will be accountability and eternal judgment for those who reject Jesus.  One day, "every knee should bow and, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:10-11)