Revelation Exegesis

Rev 1:9 I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 

Rev 6:
9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne.
10 They cried out with a loud voice, "O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"
11 Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.

Rev 12:11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.

Rev 13:
9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:
10 If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints. 

Rev 14:
12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!"

The book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ as given to John needs no “decoding”. It is treated as either all in the future or all in the past, (i.e. futurist/preterist, both sides of the proverbial bad penny that keeps turning up).
However, it is the revelation of Christ Himself, His Gospel, and His Kingdom in history from beginning to end. He and his Kingdom were, are, and are always coming. These Truths are the focus of the prophecy which John recorded.

Rev 1:
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who IS and who WAS and who IS TO COME, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne,
5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood
6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
7 Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

The Lord’s return is ever imminent; what once was, now is, and will be consummated at His return. We live in the time of both past and present, living now in the Kingdom which has been established, (the same kingdom all the saints from the days of John and all the disciples/apostles live/lived in), looking forward to the Kingdom to come in which we will all dwell forever. Christ reigns now and His reign is everlasting. This is the millennium of Rev 20:6, the last half of the 70th week of Daniel 9:26-27, the time of the end from the establishment of the New Covenant upon His death until His literal return. (Hebrews 9:15-28)

Rev 11:1
5 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever."
16 And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God,
17 saying, "We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who IS and who WAS, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign. 

Rev 16:
5 And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say, "Just are you, O Holy One, who IS and who WAS, for you brought these judgments.
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve!"
7 And I heard the altar saying, "Yes, Lord God the Almighty, true and just are your judgments!"

John is our brother and partner in tribulation then and now. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. The saints are those who share in the first resurrection which is Christ’s resurrection. (Romans 5:9-10; 6:3-5; John 3:1-8; Rev 20:)
Blessed and holy are they!

Antichristos

1John 2:

18  Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour.

19  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

20  But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.

21  I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth.

22  Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.

23  No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.   (John 10:24-38)

24  Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.

25  And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.

26  I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.

27  But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.

28  And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.

29  If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. (John 6:29)

2Cor 11:

3  But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.

4  For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.

5  Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles………….

12  And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do.

13  For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.

14  And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

15  So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.

Matthew 7:15-27

Acts 20;28-32

2Peter 2:1-3

Jude 1:3-4

Oh Sovereign God

Isaiah 48:
1 Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and who came from the waters of Judah, who swear by the name of the LORD and confess the God of Israel, but not in truth or right.
2 For they call themselves after the holy city, and stay themselves on the God of Israel; the LORD of hosts is his name.
3 "The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth, and I announced them; then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.
4 Because I know that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead brass,
5 I declared them to you from of old, before they came to pass I announced them to you, lest you should say, 'My idol did them, my carved image and my metal image commanded them.'
6 "You have heard; now see all this; and will you not declare it? From this time forth I announce to you new things, hidden things that you have not known.
7 They are created now, not long ago; before today you have never heard of them, lest you should say, 'Behold, I knew them.'
8 You have never heard, you have never known, from of old your ear has not been opened. For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously, and that from before birth you were called a rebel.
9 "For my name's sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off.
10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.
12 "Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.
13 My hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand forth together.

God's foreknowledge is based entirely on the truth that He has declared all things to be from before the foundation of the world was laid. It is not some sort of clairvoyant act. (Go to a modern charismatic/evangelical service if you are into the "amazing kreskin" approach to the prophetic)
He is not a soothsayer simply reacting at the "appropriate" time, as men make decisions, and events take place. He is not a "god" who spends his existence running from place to place putting out fires. He is the omnipotent (all powerful) one; the Lord Almighty. He is omnipresent, everywhere, throughout all time, the Eternal One.
So then He is omniscient, i.e. all knowing, not just past and present things which He caused to be, but fully prescient in all things not yet seen, but declared from of old. Omniscience, the revealing of His will past, present and future, declares His power and presence. Ultimately the final revelation of His will is seen in Christ, His Son. (Hebrews 1:1-4)


Everything under the former covenants find their fulfillment in Christ and in His Gospel, i.e. under the new and final covenant.
(Luke 24:25-26; 44-49; Hebrews 8:13)

The true apostles and prophets, that is, all the elect saints, worship the sovereign God; the God who truly is God.
.(Acts 4:23-31)   

The Hope That Is In Me

1Peter 3:
8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.
9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
10 For "Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit;
11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."
13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?
14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,
15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 

The saints are not told to defend God and His revealed Word. God and His Word are our defense; the very foundation of our hope.
Sola Scriptura!
Soli Deo Gloria!

Come Lord Jesus!

Matthew 24:
4 And Jesus answered them, "See that no one leads you astray.
5 For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and they will lead many astray……..
23 Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!' do not believe it.
24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

The surest "sign" that His return is near is the proliferation of both sign makers and sign seekers. They are not eagerly awaiting (looking for) the Lord's return. They are marketing sensationalism in the guise of "prophecy". 

Hebrews 9:
27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. 

Rev 22:
20 He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.