Even the Crazy Ones

Let's all be civil now, shall we?

We’re a bit ahead of schedule. So much so that we need to circle back a bit.

But while I have you here, let’s make sure we’re on the same page. Last time, we skipped ahead to chapter 1 verse 3, but we only did this because I wanted to show you these words: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take it to heart.” Why? It’s super important to know that Revelation begins with a beatitude, a summary of the new story we now get to experience, one that we can count on when we need it most: despite all of the evidence that points to the contrary, you have not been forgotten, you are right where you’re supposed to be for reasons you cannot comprehend, and you will be decisively restored and vindicated because of it. In other words, the purpose of Revelation is not to tell the future. It uses future realities to show how God could possibly still be in control during the craziness of the present moment.

To be fair, we actually did spend some time on verse 1 before skipping ahead. We looked at the first word of Revelation: “Apocalypse,” a word that we realized has nothing to do with the end of the world. It simply means to “lift the veil” over something hidden. No wonder we translate it as “Revelation.”

Let me show you the full verse: “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.” Without boring ourselves with more Greek words, it’s not exactly saying that Jesus is the one being revealed. It's saying that He’s the one doing the revealing. Revelation is “from” Jesus. In other words, we’re supposed to imagine that He is the author of the story we’re reading.

We can think of it this way: if the Gospel writers tell us stories of Jesus from their perspective, Revelation is Jesus telling us His own story, and how even the things we struggle with do not take Him by surprise.

That’s right. The challenges we face that often make us feel as though they are controlling us are actually in His control.

It's actually freeing to know that we're not the ones in control. But guess what comes with that? The message of Revelation is not in our control either. You would think this is obvious. Sadly, many people have already made up their minds about what this book means before they have ever read it, let alone studied it thoroughly. Sometimes, people approach Revelation with a negative view of its message; they think it's either frightening or confusing, and they'd rather not read it at all. We mentioned last week that we shouldn’t avoid this book. But there are others who love this book, so much so that...well, it's getting awkward. Today, I’d like to make the case that we cannot obsess over Revelation either.

Many people approach Revelation with obsession, and usually for one of two reasons. Maybe they have questions about how the world is going to end, but we already learned that Revelation is not designed to answer them. Instead, it answers questions like How do I know God is still in control? Did He see this coming? Does He have a plan? We should not expect to easily figure out what exactly His plan is; we should learn to rest assured that He does have a plan, and trust Him to work it out. Revelation uses dramatic imagery to show just how dramatically God will change the fortunes of people who rely on him. It is far more concerned with assuring us of this than it is with providing a clear timeline of events.

Then—and this is probably worse—some people want to use its message to make alarming claims, often arguing over who’s really part of God’s people and who isn’t. In their hands, Revelation becomes a hammer, perfectly fit to bully or scare people who don't meet their personal standards.

I’ve been hoping that these blogs are good news to you. Many people avoid Revelation because of the small minority of people who obsess over it. Many people have heard truly horrifying summaries of the story, a story that Jesus never came close to telling. If Jesus is the author, shouldn't we let Him write His own story instead of deciding how it should end before we even read it?

Now look back to that beatitude in verse 3. It's actually the first of seven beatitudes throughout the book. Now seven is a very important number in Jewish thinking. It implies wholeness, or completeness. There are seven beatitudes throughout Revelation because God's blessings are complete, and they are for you to experience in their fullness. And just like in Jesus's Sermon on the Mount, these blessings are not out of your reach. They are not far off in the distance, rather they are part of the nearness of God's kingdom.

None of the first readers of Revelation interpreted it as a message from the distant future, rather they understood it to be a message that uses the certainty of God's control over the future to speak boldly to the present. Perhaps we don't share their perspective because we still need to see that this is a story for people from all  times and places. Perhaps we need to be reminded that Revelation really is for all of us, even the crazy ones.

Shall we take a sneak peek of the end?

Prev: Here's a Better Story | Next: The End (Kind of)
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