It’s time for the annual “Thanksgiving” blog post! I’ve reflected on a variety of subjects on this occasion over the past six years (here are those posts: 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016), and as I thought about a topic for this year’s reflections, I realized that this Thanksgiving (November 24) is when many of us at Faith Church will start reading the Book of Revelation – the last book in the Bible and the final book in our 4 Year Bible Reading Plan. I found this interesting because to be honest, at times I don’t feel overly thankful for the Book of Revelation! This is partly because the symbols and images of the book can make it difficult to read and even more difficult to understand. Another reason I don’t always feel thankful for it is that it often leads to debates among Christians. In fact, Christians have questioned the faithfulness of other believers and some churches even divided because of different interpretations on matters in Revelation. A final reason that I am often not thankful for this particular book is that I have also seen how the book can be a distraction, as people spend more time trying to figure out various details and images and miss out on its broader message.
While I am not always thankful for this book, I believe it has been given to us by God and is thus useful and helpful for us (2 Timothy 3:16-17) – so I should be thankful for this gift of God to His church. Thus, I wanted to share some reasons why I – and I think you too – should be thankful that we have this book in the Bible and (for those reading it in the coming weeks) the opportunity to study it.
Thankful for the Confusion
Rather than being frustrated by (and unthankful for) the challenging nature of Revelation, I think we should be thankful for it. The fact that it is difficult to understand means that we need help to understand it. First and foremost, we should turn to God for help in understanding this book, not just intellectually, but for our hearts and souls. But this also means that we need to turn to others to help us. While we should study the Bible individually, we should not think of ourselves as being alone in our study of the Bible, but doing it in the context of a wider Christian community. This community may not just be the people around you, but also Christians in other times and places. In fact, part of the challenge in reading the Book of Revelation is that it is a kind of literature you would find 2,000 years ago but not today; this means we are not the first people to read this and we need to put ourselves in the shoes of others to understand it. When you come to a verse(s) in the book that is confusing and you can’t figure it out, don’t throw up your hands in frustration – instead, fall to your knees in prayer to the God who is never confused or perplexed! Interestingly enough, part of the message of the book is that God is in control even in the chaos that we see in this world; our experience in reading actually reinforces this message.
Thankful for the Warnings
Another reasonI am thankful for this book is the warnings it gives to the church. It reminds us that God’s people will always face opposition and that we can easily drift away from the faith. The letters to the church show us that we can fall from our first love, that we can too easily tolerate false teachings. Words in the final chapter warn us of the danger found in caving into the temptation to take away or add to God’s Word. The description of Babylon and of the beast and the false prophet reminds us that there is pressure being placed upon us from spiritual forces that oppose God to get us to pledge our allegiance to the world, rather than God. We are warned that if we are faithful to God, we will suffer (and maybe even die) for our faith. The warnings in the book may make us feel uncomfortable…which is good, because we all too often make our comfort an idol! As we live as people who pledge our allegiance not to the kingdoms of this world but the kingdom of heaven, we will feel uncomfortable at times, and when we get comfortable, it may be a sign that we have drifted and are in danger!
Thankful for the Reminder
The overarching message of the Book of Revelation is that Jesus will return, that he will reward those who are faithful to him with eternal life, and he will defeat and destroy the enemies that oppose him. We need this reminder, as it points out that God is in control even when it doesn’t feel like it, and that He will win even if it seems like His kingdom is losing. It reminds us that our hope is not in politics or programs, inventions or innovations, individuals or institutions. He will bring His kingdom in His time and in His way, and it will be even greater than what we can think or imagine. There will be people from all nations and no pain or conflict. It is even described as a banquet (Revelation 19:6-10) – one that is even better than Thanksgiving!
A Closing Gift
In addition to these thoughts on Revelation, I wanted to pass along this post from a couple of years ago with some tips on reading and understanding this book as we await the ultimate hope proclaimed in this book. “‘Surely I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).
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