A Heavenly Perspective on Earthly Circumstances

Rev. Dr. Reed Lessing, Professor of Theology and Ministry, Director of the Pre-Seminary Program, and Director of the Center for Biblicla Studies at Concordia Univeristy in St. Paul, MN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Revelation 1:1-3. The book of Revelation was given to St. John the Apostle as a vision while he was exiled on the island of Patmos. The Christian Church was under persecution near the end of the 1st Century AD; in that context, John received this marvelous book of comfort from the ascended Lord Jesus Christ. Using language that only Christians familiar with the Old Testament and the Gospels would truly understand, Jesus showed His Church that He was truly reigning over all things. If we fail to read the book of Revelation in this context as apocalyptic literature, we will run into all kinds of trouble and take numbers and images in the way that the Lord never intended. However, reading Revelation in the context of all Holy Scripture, Jesus shows Himself as our victorious Lord for whose return we pray. “Come Lord Jesus!” is a series on Sharper Iron that goes through the Revelation given to St. John. Although some look at Revelation with fear, it is a book of supreme hope in our crucified, risen, and ascended Lord. The book of Revelation gives a heavenly perspective on our earthly circumstances so that the Church in every generation is challenged, comforted, and assured of final victory through Jesus Christ.