This post is the next post in a three-part series of posts about how I go about viewing current events that I thought some might find of interest.  The first part, in case you’ve missed it is called A little about History.

As I pointed out in the earlier post, my views and attitudes about current events are strongly influenced both by history and the Bible, and here’s what I mean about the Bible:

Obviously the entire story of redemptive history should influence or views about the things that go on around us, along with the things Jesus taught us concerning the way we live and our mission to spread the Gospel and make disciples.  I don’t think I need to comment further about those things since I have posted hundreds of times on them, and will continue to do so.  In this post, I want to mention something about the lessons of the book of Revelation.

To begin, it is my view that Revelation is not primarily about the Second Coming or the end of this world, although both subjects are in the book.  For me, there is a different context altogether, and studying it for doctrines that aren’t in the overall context of the book is a disservice to the student and to the book.

As I see it, the context for Revelation is set in Revelation 1:1-2:

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what  must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw – that is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Although many may disagree, this context is not merely referring to The End.  In the roughly 1,920 years since John received his revelation, quite a few things have taken place.  For him they were in the future, for us they are in the past.  Things are taking place today, those are “current events.” Many more things will take place in the days, months and years ahead.  Most of those things are not directly concerned with the Second Coming or the End of the Age, but all of them can affect or influence our lives.  Thus, I think tha there are a great many things we can learn from Revelation that many overlook because they are more interested in the exciting final days.

This might shock you:  I don’t really care when He will return, and I have little interest in a checklist of all of the things that “must happen” before He returns, because He made three things very clear concerning His return and the end of this age:

First, when He returns, everybody is going to know about it.  Second, when He returns, everybody will be surprised.  Third, when He returns, you and I need to be ready.  I don’t know about you, but I think that I need to concern myself more about being ready than trying to guess or speculate about when it will happen, after all, it’s going to be a surprise anyway.

Oh, and one more thing:  I’ve read all of the books and watched many of the videos on the subject. I’ve even written a doctoral thesis on it,  and I haven’t noticed that the mission of the church changes when the time grows very short: It is still to take the Gospel to the lost and make disciples.  Thus, it seems to me that what we need to do is accomplish our mission, grow spiritually, follow Him through life and see what happens.  If He returns in my lifetime, it should be a happy day for me; how about you?

Now, back to Revelation…

Once we allow ourselves to see all that Revelation contains, apart from The End, we discover that it is a treasure of information about the spiritual war between God and Satan and how that battle is manifested here on earth.  That battle impacts every area of the Christian life, not to mention the life of Nations.  If we get that lesson into our minds, and we take a look at human history, the picture of what was going on in the past suddenly becomes crystal-clear.  When that happens and we look around us today, it really isn’t all that difficult to discern what is going on in our time. Therefore, for a mature Christian, the world we live in should hold few surprises.

One thing becomes abundantly clear in our world, and I will share it with you here:

Almost nothing is what it appears to be.

You can take that to the bank!

Now do you see what I mean?  It isn’t about which interpretation of Revelation you prefer, it’s about seeing that there’s more there than trying to figure out which politician you don’t care for is “The Antichrist.” (A term not found in Revelation, by the way)

Revelation shows us the great battle that is all around us.  The drama has played out over and over for at least 1,920 years, and our time is not different, even if the End is only weeks away.  Since the end will be a surprise, and since our commission is to make disciples, let’s make disciples and get a better understanding of the world we live in… and oh, by the way, with a better understanding of this world, making disciples will be a lot easier to do!

I hope this has been interesting, or at least that it has given you a little food for thought and prayer.  No, I have no intention of posting my Revelation Class Notes in Sunday Class Notes any time soon! Be sure to check out the last post in this little series, A Little about the Future.