The Revelation series hosts a profound narrative that transports us to glimpse God’s ultimate plan for the future. Through the lens of various interpretative views, we dissect historical, allegorical, and literal perspectives to uncover insights about God’s revelation to John. This episode not only examines the divine nature and glory of Christ but also encourages believers to recognize the personal unveiling of His majesty in their lives. Join us and equip yourself with knowledge that stretches across scriptural prophecies and modern-day implications.
You will never see in any other book of the Bible what you see in Revelation about Jesus Christ. There’s a sense in which you have not really come to know the Lord. Oh, you might have received him as your Savior. I understand that. But you’ve not really come to personally know his majesty and greatness until you have studied the book of Revelation. It is a revelation of Jesus Christ. That’s very interesting to me. First of all, the word revelation we use in English. We talk about the apocalypse. It’s supposed to be a day of judgment and all of that. Isn’t it interesting that the apocalypse in the Bible refers to learning about Jesus and His glory?
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Welcome to the midweek edition of Hope for Today with Bible teacher and author David Hawking. And on today’s program, we launch into one of the most powerful mind-stirring books in all of Scripture, The Revelation of Jesus Christ. This isn’t guesswork. It’s not religious fiction. This is a front-row seat to God’s final plan, unfolding with judgment, glory, and unstoppable truth. You’ll see the Lamb exalted, the nations shaken, the dragon unleashed, and Jesus Christ returning in victory. So if you’re ready for answers, ready for clarity, courage, open your Bible to Revelation chapter 1, and we’ll begin our series in Revelation in just a moment. Stay tuned. Just a quick note before we begin, let me tell you about something I think is really special, the Hope for Today newsletter. And it’s better than ever now. It’s been completely redesigned with a bright new beautiful format packed with content that matters, encouraging articles from David, ministry updates, prophetic insight, and resources to help you grow in your walk with the Lord. And this month, be watching for a vital ministry update you don’t want to miss. If you’re not receiving the newsletter yet, call us at 800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada, or you can sign up online at davidhawking.org. Just click on the newsletter sign-up. It’s about halfway down on the homepage. As promised, here’s David.
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Book of Revelation, Chapter 1. I’ve been asked to share with you on this wonderful book and it delights me because it is indeed my favorite book in the Bible. The revelation of Jesus Christ. It is not the revelation of Saint John. It is the revelation of Jesus Christ as the first verse tells us. The revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto him to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass. and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John, who bore witness of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is at hand. The word the begins the text, but it’s not in the Greek. It’s not the one and only revelation of Jesus Christ. It’s a revelation of Jesus Christ. Certainly majestic, amazing, unique from all the other revelation we have in the Bible, but it is a revelation. You don’t learn all there is to know about Jesus, but you learn more than you ever did in the Gospels. A revelation of Jesus Christ. The author, according to chapter 1, verse 4, is John. John the Apostle, look at verse 9, please. Go to chapter 21. Chapter 21, and look at verse 2. The author is John, the apostle. There have been times throughout church history when the Johannine authorship was questioned, but all scholars who study the Word of God are unanimous in saying this was written by John, the only one of the apostles who was not killed or died a martyr’s death. He died a man… Well up in the years, we’re told in some accounts that he was in his late 90s. Some even say he was over 100. We really don’t know. But the interesting thing is that the text itself is very clear in this. In verse 2 of chapter 21, it says, And I, John, saw the holy city. It’s important. He wants us to know that he’s an eyewitness. Look at chapter 22, verse 8. And I, John, saw these things and heard them. Very important in the book of Revelation that John wants us to understand that. He also wrote the Gospel of John. He also wrote the epistles of John, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John. But this is the crowning glory of his writing, the Revelation. Irenaeus, who is a church father who lived in the 2nd century A.D., says that the book was written by John during the reign of Domitian. Domitian ruled from 81 to 96 AD. And people believe that the reason John was let go and finally went back to the church of Ephesus where he was a pastor and where he died and where his tomb and grave is to this day, along with Mary, by the way, the mother of Jesus, whom John kept, as you know. Both of their graves are there in Ephesus. But according to history and the account of Irenaeus, John was released when Domitian died. And so beginning the reign of Trajan, John was let go from the Isle of Patmos and returned to Ephesus. By the way, Irenaeus claims to have direct contact with John through his disciple and friend, a man named Polycarp, who was bishop and pastor of the city of Smyrna, which is called Izmir today on the western side of Turkey, on the coast. Now there are three basic interpretations of this book, and as we begin to study it, we need to understand it. We are not here to try to offend or be dogmatic towards people who have different views. We have a knowledge of those views, but we have come to believe a particular one of them. There are three views of Revelation. One is that it’s allegorical. That is, it’s a story in symbolism form of the conflict between good and evil. There have been good Bible teachers that have held this view. Some believe it’s a story of the conflict between paganism and Christianity. And throughout church history, many people saw the book like that. There’s also the view we call historical. Historical. And there’s really two phases of the historical view of Revelation. One is that all of it was fulfilled in the early church. That is in the time of Roman Empire and Roman persecution. And that is a part of the historical view. A second historical view, which is held by many Bible teachers today, is that it pictures all of church history. They see the entire book, clear to the end, as picturing all of church history and the triumph of the gospel in the present age. The third view, and of course the correct one, is what we call the literal view. Not that there aren’t phases of the other views that are literal, but the literal view understands the events, especially from chapter 4, verse 1, to the end of the book, as being future. Now, there are disagreements among those who take a literal view of Revelation. For an example, there are those who believe the thousand-year reign of Christ is not a literal period of time when Christ will rule on earth. but they believe rather that the 1,000 years represents the triumph of the gospel in the last days of the church, the last 1,000 years. Now, if you belong to that view, you have to somehow prove to all of us that we are in an exciting time that is being blessed of the Lord and that this is better than it has ever been before. And, of course, those people do need counseling, in my opinion. Amen. But seriously, there are disagreements. We believe the thousand years spoken of in Revelation 20 is literally a thousand years. Also, you’ll find disagreements in the literal view of Revelation over the timing of the rapture of the church. Now, the word rapture comes from a Latin word, rapturo, based on 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. And I’d like you to turn there, please. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. I am constantly aware that Christians who are used to some prophetic teaching throw terms around that others in the audience may not really understand. The rapture of the church, it comes from a Latin word, rapturo, that translates a particular word in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. In verse 16, I read this, “…for the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout.” I always think when you read that, it might be good if we did the same. Just anticipating the moment, we might also respond with a shout. So whatever it is, praise the Lord. Amen. Hallelujah. Praise Alleluia. Whatever you need, express your confidence in the Word of God. The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a… Amen. You’re mixed up, but that’s all right. With the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together. The word caught up is a word that in Latin is rapturo. We say it in English, we get the word rapture. It means to seize quickly. caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Now come back to Revelation 1. There are many people who say the rapture is not mentioned in the book of Revelation. Well, that depends. I might go along with that because I really think the whole point of Revelation is dealing with the second coming of Christ and power and great glory at the end of the tribulation. But notice, please, chapter 4, verse 1. After discussing the seven churches of Revelation, we read this, chapter 4, verse 1. After this, I looked, and behold, a door was opened in heaven, and the first voice that I heard was as it were of a trumpet. The Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout and the voice of the archangel and the Trumpet of God. I heard, as it were, of a trumpet talking with me which said, come up here and I will show thee things which must be hereafter or after these things. Now many people say it doesn’t exactly say that’s the rapture. That’s true. But if you do believe in pre-tribulational rapture, you can picture yourself getting out of here in 4.1. You understand? You understand? Now, you may believe that we ought to go through the tribulation. I think it’s important to understand that Christians who believe in the pre-tribulational rapture theory should not be escapists. Now, I want to get out of here and go home to be with my Lord. But my Lord told me to occupy until he comes. And there are people all over this world that need the Lord. And persecution, we are told, will come to all those who will live godly in Christ Jesus. And it’s sort of an American angle to prophecy that causes us to be a little lax about the dear folks who believe we’re going to go through the tribulation and should prepare. I say to all of you that that mindset should be ours no matter whether we lived 100 years after the Bible was completed or 1,000 years ago. No matter when we live in church history, we should have the mindset to be prepared to suffer for our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, coming back to Revelation chapter 1. Allegorical, historical, and literal. We believe the literal view. But if you’ll notice carefully in verse 1, there’s something often overlooked. It says the revelation of Jesus Christ. which God, in this case must mean the Father, gave unto him. So if you were making a chart of this, the revelation centers in God the Father. It is then given to Jesus Christ. It is then given to an angel by Christ, and then given to John, and then John to seven churches, and in that is a message to all the churches. to all of us. So it comes from God the Father, the revelation. Turn back to the Gospel of John chapter 3 and let me show you a series of verses that might open up a matter to you that is found in chapter 1 verse 1. The revelation of Jesus Christ is what God the Father gave to him. John chapter 3 and look at verse 34 and 35. John 3, 34 and 35. It says, for he whom God has sent, our Lord Jesus, speaketh the words of God. For God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. We assume that he does to us, but not to our Lord. The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into his hand. This revelation is what God gave him. Turn to chapter 5, please, of John. And look at verse 20. Chapter 5, verse 20. For the Father loveth the Son and showeth him all things that he himself doeth. And he will show him greater works than these that ye may marvel. For as the Father raiseth up the dead and giveth them life, even so the Son giveth life to whom he will. For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son, that all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father, who hath sent him. The Father gives the revelation to his Son. Turn to chapter 7 and look at verse 16. John, the same man who wrote Revelation, writing the gospel, chapter 7, verse 16 says, Jesus answered them and said, Again, the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him. Look at chapter 8, verse 28. 8, 28, then said Jesus unto them, when ye have lifted up the Son of Man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself, but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. A revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him. Look at chapter 12, verse 49. The Lord clearly teaches it comes from his father. Chapter 14, verse 10. Chapter 14, verse 10. Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Look at verse 24. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings, and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me. Chapter 16, verse 15. Chapter 16, verse 15. Our Lord constantly made this point. All things that the Father hath are mine, therefore said I that he shall take of mine and shall show it unto you. Chapter 17, verse 8. In his prayer to the Father. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me, and they have received them. and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. Where did the words come from? Jesus said they came from my heavenly Father. He taught me. He told me what to say. He revealed it unto me. So when we read in Revelation 1.1 a revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave to him, the source of this marvelous teaching and revelation is God the Father himself. Back to Revelation chapter one, verse one. I want you to notice, if you’re taking notes, seven things about this book that is said in the opening salutation of three verses. Seven things. And they’re a great blessing to our hearts. Seven things about this book. Number one, according to verse one, it presents Jesus Christ in all of his glory. You will never see in any other book of the Bible what you see in Revelation about Jesus Christ. There’s a sense in which you have not really come to know the Lord. Oh, you might have received him as your Savior. I understand that. But you’ve not really come to personally know his majesty and greatness until you have studied the book of Revelation. It is a revelation of Jesus Christ. That’s very interesting to me. First of all, the word revelation we use in English. We talk about the apocalypse. It’s supposed to be a day of judgment and all of that. Isn’t it interesting that the apocalypse in the Bible refers to learning about Jesus and his glory? The word means to unveil or to uncover. As a noun, you’ll find it about 19 times in the New Testament. And as a verb, about 26 times, usually translated to reveal something. It’s going to uncover. It’s going to unveil. And what is being uncovered or unveiled to us in the book of Revelation that we haven’t seen anywhere else? And the answer is the glory and the majesty of Jesus Christ. I like to call it an exaltation. That’s what Revelation is all about. It’s an unveiling of the glorious person of our Lord Jesus Christ like no other book presents.
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Well, that’s David Hawking, and this is Hope for Today. And trust me, David’s just getting warmed up. This series in Revelation is going to change your life. And we’ll hear more of it. We’ll hear more teaching from David in just a moment. So do stay with us. Just ahead of that, Matt’s here, and we’re going to share something that will make this study in Revelation even better.
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The book of Revelation is prophecy, and the majority of its teachings remain unfulfilled. It has a long history of different interpretations. And while intriguing to read, the book remains a mystery to most believers.
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Many have concluded that a normal person without scholastic credentials or a thorough knowledge of Greek and Hebrew… they’re going to find it impossible to understand.
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Yeah. And many pastors and churches avoid it like entirely. I mean, deeming it too controversial and not really essential.
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Matt, our mutual friend, Don Perkins, he tells a story that when he was growing up in church, the pastor told him that they weren’t going to study the book of Revelation because if you did, It would drive you insane. Can you believe that? Well, David’s book, Revelation, Understanding the Future, addresses each of those issues in a way that’s easy to read and navigate.
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Yeah, he leads the readers through an outstanding study of each passage, providing the text, key cross-references, definitions of terms, explanations, historical context, bringing this marvelous book to life.
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Folks, readers tell us that Revelation, understanding the future, brings clarity and application from Revelation that they’ve never seen before.
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And it helps them realize the blessing that God promises us when we study this crucial wrap-up to the New Testament. And prophecies that wrap up the end time. Amen? Amen. Well, get this Revelation study tool, Revelation, Understanding the Future, for just $20 this month. That’s a 20% discount.
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This is going to be an excellent companion to our upcoming Revelation radio series as well. Order at davidhawking.org.
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That’s davidhawking.org. Or call us in Canada at 1-888-75BIBLE. In the U.S., call us at 1-800-75BIBLE. And Bible by the Numbers is 24253. And your resource purchase or your donation will help Hope for Today.
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And make you a co-laborer in the ministry with us. Amen. Well, we also want to let you know that David’s complete study through the book of Daniel is available on MP3 for just $30. To order, call 1-800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada, or you can purchase online at davidhawking.org. And when you do purchase online, you’ll also have the option to download them, and you’ll get the whole series in just minutes. And just a quick reminder that every time someone gives to Hope for Today, something happens. A message goes out. A new listener hears the gospel. A believer gains clarity and confidence from God’s Word. In other words, your support creates real spiritual results. So if you’re able, would you pray for this ministry and prayerfully consider standing with us today? To donate, write to Hope for Today, Box 3927. Tustin, California, 92781. In Canada, write to Hope for Today, Box 15011, RPO, Seven Oaks, Abbotsford, BC, V2S 8P1. You can also contribute on our website, davidhawking.org, or calling us at 1-800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. Well, once again, here’s David.
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Well, I got so excited. I hope you are, too. This is a wonderful, wonderful opportunity for all of us in these dark days around the planet. Thank God we know the future of the planet. It’s in the book of Revelation, and we’re starting by looking at the first three verses of Revelation 1. and I hope that you enjoyed our study today. We’re just getting started. We’ve got a lot of things to tell you about the apocalypse, the revelation, the unveiling of the majesty and the glory of our blessed Lord Yeshua. It is the revelation of Jesus Christ. I know you like to hear about the events and possibilities that can happen, but don’t forget, revelation is the unveiling of the Messiah in all His glory and majesty. Oh, my! I can hardly wait to tell you about it. It’s going to be a fabulous study, and of course, all of our studies are available, not only on the broadcast, but also on our website, davidhocking.org. Wow, what a blessing this is, and I hope that you are ready to receive it. We want you to know that that this is a book filled with signs and symbols, and hopefully we can help you understand those. So, thanks for listening, and stay tuned for our next broadcast as we continue our study of the opening verses of Revelation chapter 1.
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Well, next time on Hope for Today, our study in Revelation continues as David takes us back into the first chapter to continue unfolding the carefully laid out introduction to this powerful prophetic book. So be sure to join us right here on Hope for Today.
The Revelation series hosts a profound narrative that transports us to glimpse God’s ultimate plan for the future. Through the lens of various interpretative views, we dissect historical, allegorical, and literal perspectives to uncover insights about God’s revelation to John. This episode not only examines the divine nature and glory of Christ but also encourages believers to recognize the personal unveiling of His majesty in their lives. Join us and equip yourself with knowledge that stretches across scriptural prophecies and modern-day implications.
