Revelation Reminiscence (chs. 1-12)

Remember your church

Read your church’s letter together to remember what Jesus said to your church.

1. Ephesus (Rev 2:1-7)
2. Smyrna (Rev 2:8-11)
3. Pergamum (Rev 2:12-17)
4. Thyatira (Rev 2:18-29)
5. Philadelphia (Rev 3:7-13)
6. Sardis (Rev 2:1-6)
7. Laodicea (Rev 3:14-21)

Our Big Questions

Who is Jesus?

Think about your Revelation church: What does Jesus say about himself to your church?

Things Jesus says about himself

• 1:7, the same Jesus who was crucified
• 1:8, Alpha/Omega
• 1:13-16, scary, divine appearance
• 1:17-18, First/Last, Living One, holds the keys of death and Hades
• 2:18, eyes like blazing fire, feet like burnished bronze
• 2:19, knows your deeds (cf. 3:1, 8), love, faith, service, perseverance
• 3:7, ultimate authority! Shuts/opens
• 3:11, coming soon
• 3:14, the “Amen”, faithful and true witness

Ways John sees Jesus in his visions

• 5:5, Lion of Judah, Root of David
• 5:6, Lamb looking as if it had been slain (with 7 horns and 7 eyes)

What does following Jesus look like in Revelation?

Think about your Revelation church: Does Jesus say anything about belonging to him, following him, being faithful to him in your letter?

Things Jesus said about those who follow him to the end (overcome):

• 2:27, receive authority over the nations (same authority Jesus has - “iron scepter”; cf. Rev 12:5)
• 3:5, dressed in white (sign of faithfulness)
• 3:9, vindication over enemies
• 3:10, kept from the hour of trial
• 3:12, made eternal ‘pillar’ in God’s temple; receive Jesus’ new name
• 3:14-16, 20-23, don’t do as the Romans do (they stand firm against their surrounding culture)
• 3:21, sit with Jesus on his throne

Things Revelation’s “story” tells us about following Jesus

• 7:13-14, the great multitude of martyrs (overcomers) are those who “have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb”
• 12:1-6, 13-17, God’s people must resist Satan, even if it results in death

Things we’ve encountered in Revelation so far

Prayer, Judgment, and Suffering

• Souls under the altar pray for vindication (6:9-11)
• Sixth Seal - earth is shattered, and everyone from slaves to kings are shaken with fear (6:12-17)
• The Trumpets - destruction throughout the earth (8:7-9:21)
• God acts on the martyrs’ prayers and brings judgment (10:6; ch. 11)

Weird Characters

• Living Creatures with eyes all over (4:6-11)
• 24 Elders (4:4-5)
• Four Horsemen (6:1-8)
• Souls under the altar (6:9-11)
• Hot Legs the Angel (10:1-6)
• The Two Witnesses (ch. 11)
• The Dragon (ch. 12)

Numbers, Numbers, and More Numbers!

• 4 - living creatures, horsemen, winds of the earth
• 7 - lampstands, stars, churches, spirits of God, horns and eyes on the Lamb, thunders, trumpets, seals
• 10 - days Satan will persecute the Smyrnaeans
• 12 - 24 Elders (12x2), 144,000 (12x12x1000), stars around the woman’s head in ch. 12
• 1,260 - days of judgment, “a time, times, and half a time”, 3.5 years, 42 months

Songs

• 5:9-10, Living Creatures and the Elders in response to the Lamb’s worthiness
• 5:12, All the angels with the Creatures and Elders
• 5:13, All creation with the angels, Creatures, and Elders (everything that exists!)
• 7:10, martyrs sing praise as they face death
• 7:12, angels, Creatures, and Elders in response to the martyrs’ song
• 11:15, the 7th angel’s announcement of Jesus’ supremacy
• 11:17-18, the 24 Elders respond to the 7th angel
• 12:10-12, voice from heaven declares Jesus’ victory and the dragon’s defeat

Revelation Reminiscence

Some ideas you might do as a group to remember Revelation together:

• Look through Revelation’s songs and create one of your own that pieces together all the things Revelation ‘sings’ about.
• Draw an epically apocalyptic mural of the “story” of Revelation or of your favourite parts.
• Turn one of Revelation’s stories into a children’s bedtime story for your 4-year-old cousin.
• While stroking your chin like a wiseman, give your best answers to our Big Questions:
• According to Revelation, 1) Who is Jesus? 2) What does it take to follow him?