Key Truth: We are blessed by the presence and victory of Christ who invites us to serve as a kingdom of priests in His unfolding redemptive work to fulfill all of God’s promises as revealed in Revelation.  

Introduction:

How do you react to books, studies, or sermon series on Revelation?
Would you prefer not to get tangled up in strange visions and complexities?
Or are you excited to hopefully receive some new knowledge about historical events and the end times?

Blessed are Those Who Read, Hear, and Keep Christ’s Revelation:

Revelation 1:1-3: 

“As with all Scripture, readers must not only hear the word of God but also take to heart what they read. In other words, they must take note and adjust their attitudes, their conversation, their worship and their way of life in the light of God’s word. Those who are willing to do this will be blessed. They will receive the fullness of God’s blessings for them and inherit all that he has in store for those who trust and believe in him.”

Paul Gardner, Revelation: The Compassion and Protection of Christ

What are some ways in which you have been blessed by reading, hearing, and keeping God’s Word from the rest of Scripture?
How does this affect your expectations for your being blessed by our time in Revelation?

Jesus Died and Rose Again to Make Us a Kingdom of Priests for God’s Use and Glory:

Revelation 1:5-8

“Behind this phrase [Alpha and Omega] lies the idea that a sovereign hand is in charge of the future: that history is His-story. What happens to God’s servants is not chance, but decree. God orders and fulfills his plan for his people, even in the face of terrible and terrifying events. No matter how bad it may seem, God never abdicates his rule.”
Derek Thomas, Let’s Study Revelation

What does it mean for us to function as a kingdom of priests?
What comfort do you derive from the sovereignty of God over all of history?

Jesus Keeps His Promise: His Presence in the Church to the End of the Age:

Revelation 1:9-20

“The symbols seen by John in the vision reveal not what Jesus looks like but what he is like—his identity as the searcher of hearts, full of consuming holiness and boundless wisdom, the perfect priest standing for his people before the Father, the perfect king defending them against the devil by his invincible Word. Revelation’s visions show us how things are, not how they look to the physical eye.”
Dennis E. Johnson, Triumph of the Lamb: A Commentary on Revelation

What comfort do you derive from Christ’s promised presence with His churches through God’s Word and the Holy Spirit?

Revelation 1 teaches us that:
-blessed are those who read, hear, and keep the revelation of Christ
-Christ died and rose again to make us a kingdom of priest for God’s use and glory
-Christ dwells with His church through God’s Word and Spirit until the end of the age

Communion

Benediction:

Revelation 7:15-17