“Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near” (Revelation 1:3, NIV).

The book of Revelation is perhaps the one book in the New Testament that I’ve read and studied the least. That’s probably because it’s the one I least understand.

There’s so much imagery and symbolism that I don’t get. There’s so many interpretations and I don’t know who and what to believe.

Have its prophecies been fulfilled or are they yet to be fulfilled? Will Christians be raptured before the Second Coming of Christ? Is the millennial reign of Christ on Earth literal or symbolic?

These are some of the questions I carry into my reading of Revelation because I have relied on the interpretations of others I consider more knowledgeable than myself to help me understand its prophetic discourse.

But, the book of Revelation shouldn’t be neglected or ignored in our personal Bible study. It shouldn’t be left to Bible scholars to explain it’s meaning to us.

Revelation has much to offer the diligent and conscientious reader. We know this because it begins by promising a blessing to those who read it. It declares that those who read it and take it to heart (apply it to their faith) will be blessed!

Although it’s difficult to understand, that is the very reason we should engage in reading and studying it all the more in order to obtain its blessing.

So, I am going to post a series of meditations on the book of Revelation and try to set aside my preconceived notions based on interpretations that I’ve read in the past.  These posts are intended to be more reflective and devotional than they are explanatory or interpretive.

And, as we work our way through the book of Revelation, you may find that I have not formulated interpretations for all its imagery, but hopefully I will have extracted much of its spiritual relevance to your Christian life and faith so you can be blessed by it!

God has an End Game and it’s revealed to us in the book of Revelation.

All that’s wrong in the created order God will finally put to rights. He will redeem His Creation!

In the book of Revelation God tells us how he’s going to complete this redemptive process and how it impacts His Creation.

Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. (Revelation 21:3, NIV)