The Book of Revelation

I greet you in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

I’ve heard many people say that the Book of Revelation is a “scarey” book, and they get a bit uncomfortable reading it.  Personally, I see it as the Word of God and nothing to be afraid of!  "For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (2 Timothy 1:7).  When something is “sound”, it is sophronismos’, meaning it is disciplined and self-controlled!  The synonym for “sound” is whole, undamaged, healthy, robust, logical, true, valid, reliable, strong, firm, thorough, and stable.  The only way one can get the Revelation of this Book is with a “sound mind”.

It is titled “THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE”, but it is actually “THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST”!

What is “REVELATION”?  It comes from the Greek word apokal’upsis, meaning a disclosure: be revealed, to lighten, manifestation, coming, appearing.  It comes from another Greek word apokalup’to, meaning to take off the cover, ie disclose or reveal.

When something is disclosed, it is made known or brought directly into view.  A  revelation is an expansion of knowledge, understanding or awareness of the mind to grasp the unknown, and it becomes known to you.  That which was hidden is now revealed!

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge (epig’nosis or recognition; full discernment) of him:  the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints”  (Ephesians 1:17-18).

The Book of Revelation is the revealing of the total manifestation of Jesus Christ in the Church (His people) and the revealing of the total manifestation of His people (the church) in Christ!

The word Revelation is our English word Apocalypse.  I’ve heard some of the Teachers of “Religion”  teach about the Apocalyptic Horses that are to come and have seen some of the “pictures” of those Horses they said were to come.  So I guess God has a stable in Heaven where He’s keeping these Horses.  The Apocalypse is not about Horses; it is about the REVELATION (apokal’upsis or manifestation; coming; appearing or apokalup’to or disclosure; revealing) OF JESUS CHRIST, not out in the sky but in His people right here and right now!  Though the Book of Revelation speaks of “Horses”, it is in relation to the strength and power of the Almighty God!

The first five words in Revelation 1:1: “The revelation of Jesus Christ” are the fulfilling of Genesis 1:1: “In the BEGINNING God created”!  The “BEGINNING” here does not denote a calendar date, but it is a PERSON, the MAN JESUS CHRIST!  Colossians chapter one tells us about Christ’s preeminence.  “And He is the head of the body, the church:  who is the BEGINNING” (Colossians1:18).  “I am Alpha and Omega, the BEGINNING and the ENDING” (Revelation 1:8).  “And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the BEGINNING of the creation of God” (Revelation 3:14).

“To wit (know), that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19).

Revelation 1:3 “Blessed is he that READETH, and they that HEAR the words of this prophecy, and KEEP those things which are written therein:  for the time is at hand”!

John wasn’t seeing anything to come out in the sky, but he was seeing the “WHAT WAS” (the dispensation of Innocence, Conscious, Human Government, Promise and Law), the “WHICH IS” (the dispensation of Grace because Jesus had died and was resurrected), and the “WHICH WAS TO COME” (the dispensation of the Kingdom), which was eternal and even now is because Jesus was and is THAT KINGDOM which shall never end!!! 

The Word of God didn’t say blessed is he that is scared of this prophecy, but blessed is he that readeth and hear the words of this prophecy.  This word “read” doesn’t mean to pronounce words, though we need to do that as well, but this is the Greek word anaginosko meaning to know again!  What is it we must KNOW AGAIN?  We must know that we were with Him in the Beginning, and we must now move back into Him to be total overcomers in these flesh bodies we are in now!

“Therefore if any man be IN CHRIST, he is a new creature:  old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

We can’t just have Christ in us; we must be in Christ!!  When we are in Christ, we become the new creature, or ktis’is, meaning original formation.  We must return to the place of dominion and power we had with God in the BEGINNING!  We are spiritual beings having a natural experience.  We must overcome HERE AND NOW!!

“For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, THEN  SHALL BE BROUGHT TO PASS THE SAYING THAT IS WRITTEN, Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Corinthians 15:53-54).

(This doesn’t happen after one dies and goes up yonder; this must happen here and now!)

“In the BEGINNING was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The same (autos – him, her, them) was in the BEGINNING with God" (St. John 1:1-2).

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us” (St. John 1:14).

“As He is, so are we in this world’” (1 John 4:17).

We have done an indepth study of the Book of Revelation, and it is a very interesting and revealing Book of JESUS THE CHRIST!  We’ve just begun the last chapter.  It has taken us seven years to do it, but it has been an enlightening journey, and we will certainly be sharing these Revelations with the people of God! 

May the LORD ever bless and keep you!!

~ Apostle Gracie Perry