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What Is Revelation About?
Unveiling The Shocking True Theme Of The Apocalypse
What Is Revelation About? Open the Book of Revelation in God’s holy Word. What do you see? Monstrous beasts prowl through its pages. A vicious Antichrist fights for world domination. The dreaded number 666 is seared into the foreheads or hands of a deceived public. Two dragon-like witnesses with fire roaring from their mouths destroy all opposition. The world is engulfed in flame with violence, destruction and death everywhere. Is this the vision that fills your mind as you think about the last book of the Bible? Does it conjure up images of an apocalyptic, dystopian world that can only be rescued from destruction by the emergency return of Christ?
Is the Book of Revelation to be looked at as a doomsday prophecy of the future that makes every horrendous massacre of the past pale in comparison? Was the apostle John an ancient forerunner of Stephen King? What is Revelation all about? What is the theme that draws it all together and gives it meaning and purpose?
What Is Revelation About?
Be Happy!
For nearly 2,000 years, thrill-seekers and fear-mongers have abused the Book of Revelation, while others have wondered what is Revelation about. If your vision of this final book of the Bible drives fear of the future into your heart or causes doubts about the goodness of God to arise in your mind, then, like millions before you, you have been deceived! It is time to shake off the shakes of doom and explore the true meaning of Revelation.
John plainly declares in Verse Three of Chapter One: Blessed - or happy - is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed - or happy - are those who hear it and take to heart what is written…
If reading the Book of Revelation doesn’t make you happy, then you don't understand what John wrote.
The doomsayers will quickly point out that the second word in the Book of Revelation is the Greek word “apokalupsis,” from which we get our English word “apocalypse.” In fact, this is called the Apocalypse of John, and we have all heard of the Four Riders Of The Apocalypse. We know that an apocalypse relates to or predicts the end of the world or the collapse of civilization. Check any dictionary.
English is a growing, dynamic language. Words change meaning, sometimes coming to mean opposite things. We should not ask what apocalypse means to us today, but what did apokalupsis mean to John when he wrote it? An easy search in the Strong’s Concordance Greek Dictionary reveals that apokalupsis means a disclosure of truth, making unknown things known, and making hidden people or events visible. Nothing in the word itself suggests a catastrophe or the end of the world.
If we put the first three verses of Revelation in its introduction together, what do we have? Jesus Christ, through His servant John, will reveal something that was hidden but will make us happy. Does that fit your vision of Revelation? If not, you have a wrong vision.
What Is Revelation About?
Unlocking Its Real Theme
A growing number of sincere Christians are now seeking Revelation’s true meaning. They are actively searching for Truth. While many of them have not left the chains of an imagined dark future, the light of the real meaning of Revelation has dawned in their hearts. Joy has lightened their steps and encouraged their lives as Truth has begun to displace lies.
So, what is the theme of Revelation? What is it all about? What secret key to unlock its mysteries have millions of seekers failed to find?
The very first verse states that this Holy Book is a revelation “of” or “from” Jesus, depending on the translation. Either way, Jesus is front and center of everything about to be revealed, which leads us to our overarching theme.
The Book of Revelation, with its dramatic visions and strange symbolism, centers on the theme of worship. The word “worship” appears twenty-two times within its pages. In comparison, the Gospel of Matthew uses this word thirteen times, and no other book of the New Testament uses it more than seven times. The only two books of the sixty-six volumes of the Bible that refer to worship more often than this final book are Exodus and Deuteronomy.
This is exciting! Your heart should leap with love. The Holy Spirit chose to end His holy Word with a manual on worship! How often have you considered the Book of Revelation a book of worship? When you hear messages or see videos on this awesome Book, do you hear about worship? If not, they are missing the entire point!
Human beings were designed for worship. We will worship. We have no choice; it’s who we are. The only question is who will we worship. Jesus Christ reveals to us in this last Book of the Bible the only two ultimate persons of worship in the universe. Right now, we are worshipping one or the other. We are either worshiping Jesus Christ or Satan. We cannot worship both. We may delude ourselves into thinking we are worshipping Jesus when, in fact, we are worshipping Satan. We may walk in self-deception, thinking we are not worshippers. But the Book of Revelation shatters our illusions and reveals that we are either worshipping Jesus or Satan. There are no other choices.
Before we venture any further, we need to have a clear image of what the Holy Spirit means by the word He used for worship in the Book of Revelation. The Greek word is “Proskuneo” which is pronounced pros-koo-neh’-o. Grab your seat. The definition of this word may destroy your image of worship. No longer will you confuse the expressions of worship in a church service or private devotions with the act of worship. The Book of Revelation blows that all away!
What Is Revelation About?
The Definition Of Worship
Are you ready? Worship is a verb, an action word. Our word for worship means to kiss the hand in token of reverence, to fall on the knees and touch the ground with the forehead in an expression of profound reverence, kneeling or laying before someone to express respect or make requests. It likely comes from a word which means to kiss like a dog licking its master’s hand.
If the image of being like a dog licking its master’s hand in absolute devotion doesn’t strike at the heart of our pride, probably nothing will. True worship is a lifestyle of giving absolute reverence, respect and obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ. We have times when we visibly express our worship by singing, praising, raising hands, kneeling, laying, and many other ways, but if it does not come from a heart of reverence and respect, then it is not true worship. How many Christians do you know who enter their church with a sense of awe and honour at coming into the manifest presence of God and a throne room of the King of kings?
The Book of Revelation also reveals that what Satan wants most is worship. He wants to supplant God by taking what only God has a right to. Satan offered to give Jesus everything in this world if He would only bow down and worship him [Matt. 4:9]. This doesn’t mean that Satan wants a world full of people who consider themselves devil worshippers, although that would delight him. He is content when people give their lives away to pleasure and sin. It is an act of worship when people give reverence and priority to anything above the Lord Jesus Christ. Even wrong priorities with good things are a subtle way of offering worship to Satan, such as prioritizing a sports event over the church and catering to family above obedience to God’s Word. We all need repentance and forgiveness as the Holy Spirit puts His finger on unholy idols in our lives.
What Is Revelation About?
Falling Down In Worship
Keeping the definition of worship in mind, read through the Book of Revelation to see how many times someone is falling at the feet of Jesus in worship. It’s happening all the time! How could we have missed it?
The vision of Jesus in Chapter One is so incredible that at the end of the chapter, we see John falling at His feet as a dead man. Jesus had to encourage him and tell him not to be afraid. If we can come into the presence of the Holy One without a sense of fear and awe as well as love, then we’ve not truly seen Him. No man stands in the presence of God, Creator of the Universe, Redeemer of His Chosen.
Journey with me to Chapter Four for an amazing description of God, His throne and His attendants. Look at those strange living creatures covered with eyes, revealing their total perception and attentiveness. Listen to their worship in Verse Eight:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, Who was, and is, and is to come.”
Bible writers use repetition to emphasize the importance of what is being said. For example, in the King James Version of John 3:5, Jesus told Nicodemus, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee…” The repetition is like Jesus saying, “This is super important; you had better pay attention.” The NIV translates it as “very truly,” so the repetition is not as obvious as in the original language.
In the rare case where something is repeated three times, it underscores its ultimate Truth or reliability. When the living creatures worship God as “holy, holy, holy,” they express God's defining characteristic. The Bible says God is love, but it never says God is love, love, love. All of God is worthy of worship, but at the base of everything is the holiness of God. We forget or neglect this attribute of God at our own peril. Revelation’s worship manual brings it back to the forefront.
These living creatures remind us who are still on earth that God is the Lord of all. His only is the right to command. As the Almighty, He not only has the right to command but also the ability to command. No one can oppose Him. Even the second most powerful being in the universe, Satan, is like a wiggling worm under the foot of God. No contest. Finally, they bring to our attention the eternal nature of our God. There was never a time when God did not exist, and there will never be a time when God ceases to exist. We can have confidence in our God, Who never changes and is always there.
In just a few verses, the twenty-four elders fall on their faces before God in worship. They praise God for He is worthy, as the Creator and Sustainer of all creation, to receive all glory, honour, and power. As one songwriter has said of Jesus, “You are beautiful beyond description!” The Book of Revelation gives a glimpse of something so wonderful that our minds cannot even grasp it.
What Is Revelation About?
A Great Multitude
Look at Verse Nine of Chapter Seven:
After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language standing before the throne and before the Lamb.
Look, look, look! In Verse 11, they fall down on their faces in worship again! People in the Book of Revelation seem to have a hard time standing. If we caught a glimpse of the glory of God, we wouldn’t be on our feet either.
Read the Book of Revelation looking for worship. You will see it everywhere. Yes, some will worship Satan, but those who worship the Lamb before the Throne far outnumber and outshine Satan’s followers. Don’t even try to understand the other parts of Revelation until you can look at it through the eyes of worship.
Next time you hear someone lifting up the Beast or the AntiChrist in Revelation, ask yourself why they are glorifying him and not Jesus Christ. Jesus is the One Who needs to be lifted up for all the world to see!
For more information about Glenn Davis, see our About Glenn page or visit Glenn Davis Books.
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