The Highlights Series Part 1 by John Luke RobertsonSample

The study of the book of Revelation can seem intimidating to read and pour over. For our study, we are just going to look at Chapters 21-22. The apostle John wrote Revelation around the year A.D 95.  He was in exile on the island Patmos, which means he had some time on his hands, but mostly he was inspired by God to leave us with the message in Revelation. Oh yeah, Revelation (comes from the Greek word for apocalypse) is a fitting name for the book because it “reveals” things not yet known—a revelation.

John addressed his work to seven Asian churches—Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia (not the one in Pennsylvania) and Laodicea. Each of these seven churches received a message directed specifically for them before John jumps into his account of the future which he received in his vision from God.

Now, to Revelation 21-22. If the book of Revelation confuses you, these last two chapters are filled with the good news. The judgments are past, the terrible plagues upon the earth are ended and we’re given a view of heaven coming down to earth; a time when the prayers of God's people for centuries, "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven," will be answered.

Chapters 21 and 22 contain almost all the Bible records concerning the eternal state of heaven. It opens with beautiful words, “Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” We’re brought full circle from the beginning of the bible where it says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” In Revelation we are introduced to the time when that old heaven and earth will pass away and a new heaven and earth come.

The Bible is God’s wonderful plan for man’s redemption. From start to finish, God’s plan and purposes are revealed. Revelation is a culmination of God’s plan to secure an everlasting relationship with us and what that glorious day and time will look like. God’s story is always about His desire to have a relationship with mankind. Throughout the Bible, we come to see God as a God of tender mercies, extending a hand to humans over and over again.