Joel Nagel
12.31.2020
Revelation 20-21
We did it! Great job to all who contributed – may these resources inspire many!
Despite its reputation for being a book of prophecy, these chapters are some of the only future looking chapters in Revelation. As I see it, almost all of what preceded these chapters has already happened. These apocryphal passages give us a glimpse into God’s tomorrow with figurative style, symbolism, and numerology.
The thousand years of chapter 20 has given birth to a handful of theological positions on end times. But I believe that like the other numbers in Revelation, these are figurative – using Hebrew numerology (10x10x10) to express a fulness of time that could be any number of years. after giving us many numbers that are less than complete throughout the book, we’re being told that this is it. No more partial judgment – this is the real thing. Death was defeated by Jesus on the cross and now we get to see it.
With the world freed from sin and death, we don’t go up to heaven – a new heaven and a new earth are joined. Christ marries his bride the church. God with us! The rest of the chapters stylistically dream about the intimate eternity with God that looms on the horizon until we reach the last word of God’s word which is fittingly, “Amen.”
Key Verse:
Revelation 21:5
“Behold, I am making all things new.”
Ever wonder what God is doing right now? He’s making everything new! He’s a God of renewal and he has power to restore anything that’s broken. He’s doing it on a cosmic level and the last day will be a revealing of a restored creation with God and his people no longer separated by the curse of sin and death – just like it should have been.
What a great verse to end this year long challenge with and what a great verse to take us into the New Year.
What do you want to see renewed or restored in your life? God can do it because Jesus has done it!
Happy New Year!
2020 Bible Vision 