The book of Revelation in a surprising book.
For the first 20 yrs of my life, I shied away from it due to my upbringing and the mind numbing fears I lived through as a child and young adult. (Check out My Testimony for an explanation)
After I became a believer, I hunted and pecked through the book for key verses that would comfort me. But still the memories haunted me and I generally steered away from it. To my loss!
Occasionally I would hear some preaching on the letters to the churches of Revelation, and was introduced to the teaching that each church in the second and third chapter of the book represented a church age. Some teachers split the ages up into specific dates, identifying each age with a predominant characteristic. Initially this appealed to me, since it was presented in a spreadsheet, and most anything in a spreadsheet is super cool for me!
But after thinking about the breakout, I began to struggle with accepting it. It didn’t ring true, at least in this last few hundred years, where the teaching is that we are in the period of the church of Laodicea. I don’t know if those believers in persecuted lands would identify with this designation of being a lukewarm church.
There may be some general truth to this teaching. After all, it is the book of Revelation, and such a mysterious book, full of layers and meanings.
Ok, with that said, let’s move forward many years in my pilgrimage, and stop at a time during a different study topic.
I have found, much to my utter shock, that the book of Revelation depends on Old Testament teaching more than any other book of the New Testament. This floored me. And it opened up an interest in the Book that I hadn’t expected.
Combining both of these topics never occurred to me until I picked up a book by David Chilton.
You see, he has suggested that the letters to the churches are historical, and represent ages of believers, but not from the standpoint of the apostle John’s future, but of Israel’s past.
Yes – of Israel’s past!
Get out!
Join me as I seek to explain an additional viewpoint of the letters to the churches, and of the wonders of this incredible book.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion.
Considering the Bible 