6th April 2024 – Revelation 1:1-3
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
As to the interpretation of the book as a whole, there are those who hold that almost
everything in the book refers to what will yet come to pass in the future, and that, apart from
the references in chs 2 and 3, none of it has yet happened. Others hold the opposite view,
and maintain that most of its reference is to the past, and that it is possible to see the unfolding of its visions in the course of history between the first coming of Christ and our own day.
Another and more intelligible and satisfactory view, however, is that the book presents a series of pictures, parallel to one another, seven pictures in all, each of them covering the whole
period between our Lord's first coming and His second, and adding to the intensity of the
preceding one, and building up to a grand climax in the end. Chapters 1-3 constitute the first
picture, the vision of Christ among the seven candlesticks, a picture relevant for every age; 4-
7 the second picture, also reaching from Christ's first coming to the second; 8-11 the third;
12-14 the fourth; 15,16 the fifth; 17-19 the sixth; and 20-22 the last. Within this analysis there
is another major division that can be made. Chapters 1-11 portray the struggle between the
Church on the one hand and the world on the other, while the second half of the book, chapters 12-22, takes us, so to speak, behind the scenes to the unseen conflict between Christ and
Satan, which lies behind the conflict between the church and the world. (This analysis and
interpretation is expounded fully in the commentary on Revelation by W. Hendriksen, 'More
than Conquerors', and is one of the ablest and most satisfying available in the bookshops today).
5th April 2024 – Revelation 1:1-3
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus…
1st April 2024 – Matthew 28:16-20
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshipped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go…
31st March 2024 – Matthew 28:9-15
9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshipped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” 11 While they were going,…
30th March 2024 – Matthew 28:5-8
5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell…
28th March 2024 – Matthew 28:1-4
28 Now after the Sabbath, towards the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came…
27th March 2024 – Matthew 28:1-4
28 Now after the Sabbath, towards the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came…
26th March 2024 – Matthew 27:62-66
62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ 64 Therefore order the tomb to be…
25th March 2024 – Matthew 27:57-61
57 When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. 58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. 59 And Joseph…
24th March 2024 – Matthew 27:50-56
50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. 51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many…