Johann Quisumbing

By JQuisumbing

Before I start, I want to beg for your forgiveness. After reviewing what I have posted so far, I think I may have overkilled my use of metaphors in this topic. First, I started with an odd title, “Unpeeling the Mysteries of Revelation”. Knucklehead me! I mean, ‘how do you unpeel an onion?’, I thought as I foolishly shook my head. I changed that right away.  Anyway, I hope I didn’t drive you crazy when I jumped from peeling an onion, or to digging deeper for treasure, or to putting a jigsaw puzzle together. Speaking of which, I am going to put together the first part below. Of course, to do this, we need one more piece, hahaha! We need to look at verse 3 of Revelation 1.

God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church, and he blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near. (Rev 1:3 NLT)

In this verse, there are four aspects that need pointing out.

[1] God blesses or Blessed… 

As soon as I read “Blessed”, what came to mind right away was Jesus’ prologue to the Sermon on the Mount where He stated nine times using that same word.

1. Blessed are the poor in spirit
2. Blessed are those who mourn
3. Blessed are the meek
4. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness
5. Blessed are the merciful
6. Blessed are the pure in heart
7. Blessed are the persecuted for doing right
8. Blessed are the peacemakers
9. Blessed are those who suffered unjustly for Christ  (Matt 5:3–11)

What is the connection? I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to take the long way around with this. This means I need a starting point. Here is a rule-of-thumb for researchers: look for patterns and/or common denominators. In this case, everyone above was blessed by the Lord. If you have an inquisitive mind like mine, then this question begs to be asked? 

Who would NOT be blessed by God? To help me with this, I have to cite the opposite of those listed above. And they would be…

1. those that regard themselves as socially/culturally/politically significant, even superior… needing no one, especially God 
2. those that don’t think much of their own sinfulness
3. those who are prideful for their own good
4. those who do not follow their God given conscience and go their own way
5. those who are habitually severe, stern, harsh, grim, ruthless, pitiless, merciless, unsentimental, insensitive, etc…
6. those who are fainthearted, morally weak, unprincipled, ethically challenged, etc…
7. those who are instigators, agitators, troublemakers, warmongers, and yes, even aloof spectators
8. those who hate righteousness of any kind
9. those who deny the Lord Jesus when it should count

Here comes the incredible part! For these people to be blessed by the Lord, they had to experience a dramatic change. When they repented and placed their faith on the Savior, they became saved. 

There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

JESUS CHRIST

He is the common denominator. So, let us look at the connection between Rev 1:3 and the Beatitudes. The Greek for blessed is makarios (mak-ar’-ee-os) which basically means happy… the happiness that only God can endow. The Apostle Peter called it an inexpressible and glorious joy, of which you can only be filled by faith in Jesus. (1 Peter 1:8)

[2] God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church…

One who imparts prophecy is technically a prophet. In Old Testament Hebrew, the prophet basically means the mouth of God. To be a prophet is not just being a divine mouth-piece, it is also an ability to impart interpretation to others. It is a gift. But not only that. It is the PREFERED gift of the Spirit because prophecy does edify the church. (1 Cor. 14:3)

[3]  God blesses… all who listen to its message and obey what it says

Here is a related verse from the epistle of James.

For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. (James 1:23)

I don’t think I need to expand on this. Do you?

[4] …for the time is near

A true servant must have certain ethical disciplines. In Luke 12:35-40, Jesus gave His disciples what those disciplines entailed. The connection of which can be summarized in this verse.

“You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.”  (Luke 12:40)

INTERPRETATIVE MESSAGE

Now, we can put together the puzzle pieces we’ve collected so far. This means we get to interpret. Let us again look at the passage below in its entirety.

This is a revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants the events that must soon take place. He sent an angel to present this revelation to his servant John, who faithfully reported everything he saw. This is his report of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church, and he blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near.  (Rev 1:1-3 NLT)

Keep in mind that this is the prologue of the final book of the Holy Bible. These words set the stage for the reader. So, this is how I will show my interpretation of it. I am going to put myself in the shoes of John and rewrite verses 1-3 using my own words. Now, John wrote about himself in the third person. For our purpose, I’ll use the first person perspective.

So, end the interpretive part of the exercise. As to the application aspect…

There are more to say, but reserve that for future posting.

Welcome to REVELATION

Again, I look forward to your INPUT. Please communicate to me your questions. Pertinent questions can give us direction. Message me your insights especially when the Spirit of God leads. Let us discuss.

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