People love to talk about the end of the world. Isn’t that funny? No one wants to talk about death but everyone wants to speculate what will happen when the world comes to an end. There’s been an eerie fascination with the book of Revelation for the last several hundred years because people like to write their own generation into its pages. Each generation has some quack who thinks John must have been referring to their country, their own leaders and their own particular woes. Each of these wannabe prophets have died and their empty prophecies have died with them. The saddest part is their ramblings have created a vast distrust in the Bible. Stop twisting the Bible to come in line with your story and start letting the Bible bring your story in line. The only way a confused, irritated, chaotic culture will begin to see validity in the living Word of God is if those who know it to be alive treat it with reverence and respect.
Prophecy is a very real thing. The Bible is filled with prophetic messages that actually came true. Did you know, most prophets didn’t deal with the future? The prophetic conversation is mostly about the present day and time in which it was written and only partially about the future. Here’s some specific data: “Less than 2% of Old Testament prophecy is Messianic. Less than 1% concerns events yet to come in our time.” That’s a quote from a very reliable set of biblical scholars. So many today want to flip those percentages: 90% of prophecy can be applied to the present day. This is a willy nilly approach and will end up frustrating far more people than it helps or encourages.
Every biblical prophecy is relevant but not all are something we should look to be fulfilled today. For example, don’t take Isaiah’s words about exile to mean that China will take over America. What’s a prophecy we can take to the bank that concerns us? Jesus said “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” That’s Jesus speaking about a future that only God can know. He’s unpacking events in real time almost like a dad who’s been there sharing news about the world with his son. It’s a promise, “I will come and get you!” He doesn’t give us the details for a reason. We don’t need them to do the job He’s given us. Fixating on dates and times of Jesus’ return only distracts us and others from the task at hand.
What’s another rock solid prophecy we can stand on today? John paints a description of a beautiful Shepherd guarding His sheep AND a mighty warrior defending them from their enemies in his Revelation. I love the vision of the seven lampstands. John tells us these are the seven churches he addresses in his book. And where is Jesus in the vision? Right in the middle of the churches. They are hurting and being hurt. They are striving for righteousness and missing the mark. Some of them are going to sleep, but Jesus is not far off. He isn’t laughing at their mistakes or tired of their selfishness. He is with them; among them; right beside them. He speaks warmly and with fire all at the same time. His words cut and heal. We read these words and know that just as Jesus was in the midst of the seven churches then, so is He in our midst. And just as He lovingly corrects them, so will He continue to lovingly correct us. And as He promises their lamp will be removed if they do not repent, so He promises to remove His power and presence from our midst if we do not heed His correction.
Prophecy is a beautiful thing. It’s not a threat from a vengeful God, nor is it a roulette wheel designed for us to spin and guess its meaning. It is truth about the present and the future that offers us hope. Read it as carefully as you would any other part of the Bible. Enjoy it! Witness its beauty and grace as it’s fulfilled. Thank God for it! And when you get to that one percent that may (or may not) affect us, pray for wisdom to interpret it.