Denver Seminary

David L. Mathewson, PhD ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF NEW TESTAMENT David L. Mathewson is associate professor of New Testament at Denver Seminary. He formerly taught at Gordon College and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. He is the author of Revelation: A Handbook on the Greek Text (Baylor), and Where is the Promise of His Coming? The Delay of the Parousia in the New Testament (Cascade). If the book of Revelation and its emphasis on the return of Christ do not inspire obedience in us, we have missed the point of the book from the outset. There is blessing and reward for those who take Revelation's message to heart and do what it calls us to do: show obedience to the Lamb. A Call to Worship. What often gets missed in our preoccupation with eschatology (the theological term for end-times) is that Revelation is mainly a book about worship. Scattered throughout the book are songs and hymns sung by various persons and groups in praise of the Godhead for who it is and what it has done and will do when Christ returns. Chapter 4 opens with a vision of God seated on the throne with all of heaven worshiping. God is worshiped because He is the sovereign creator of all things. But in Chapter 5, God and the Lamb are both worshiped, because through the Lamb, God has acted to redeem creation. God and the Lamb are worshiped because they have created all things and redeemed all things. The main questions Revelation 4-5 raises are: Who is in control? Who is worthy of worship and allegiance? At the center of all reality stand God and the Lamb, who are alone worthy of the exclusive worship of their people. What takes place in heaven shall one day become a reality on earth—at the return of Christ in the new creation (21:1-22:5). In anticipation of the day when all creation will worship God and the Lamb, God's people worship them now. If the book of Revelation and its emphasis on the return of Christ do not inspire obedience in us, we have missed the point of the book from the outset. A Call to Mission. The book of Revelation and the coming of Christ should motivate the church to mission. In the final vision in 21:1-22:5, the nations who were formerly hostile to God and His people and who sided with the world now enter the New Jerusalem. The primary role of the Church in Revelation is to be a kingdom of priests (1:6) who witness to the world the reality of God's kingdom and His Son, Jesus Christ. The fact that the Church is represented by a lampstand in 1:20 suggests that they are to illuminate the world through their witness to the truth of God's word. The fact that some of the churches in Chapters 2-3 are compromising with the pagan world calls into question their witness. The two witnesses in Chapter 11 represent the Church, who carry out their witness, even in the face of opposition. It is through the faithful witness of the Church that the nations from every tribe, tongue, people, and language will one day turn to Christ and enter the New Jerusalem. A Warning Against Complacency. Five of the seven churches addressed in Revelation 2-3 were guilty of some kind of complacency and compromise. Revelation was written not to comfort those churches, but to shock them out of their complacency and warn them of the coming judgment if they failed to repent. In the same way, Revelation is a call to the Church today not to become too comfortable with our existence in this world—not to become too complacent with our surroundings and belongings. I suspect that this is how Revelation should function for many Christians today, who unlike some of our Christian brothers and sisters who are being persecuted and even put to death for their faith, need to read the book of Revelation. Revelation warns us not to keep too tight of a grip on things in this world, because the world, and all that is in it, will one day pass away. The vision of Christ coming at the end of history to establish a new and just world should motivate God's people to refuse to compromise with this truth. Revelation is a call to the Church today not to become too comfortable with our existence in this world—not to become too complacent with our surroundings and belongings. Conclusion. The coming of Christ is not just a theological position to be confessed; it is a reality to be lived. As we await the return of Christ, we join with John and all the saints at the end of Revelation and confess, "Amen! Come Lord Jesus!" (22:20). In the meantime, the return of Christ should inspire us to have hope, motivate us to obedience, move us to worship, activate us for mission, and guard us against complacency. fstop123/iStock 14 FALL 2019

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