When the book of Revelation is read by Christians today, it is often read as a pastiche of horrifying portents, full stop.
Whether this is a wise reading or not, I’ll leave that to others to determine. But it is, most certainly, a truncated and incomplete reading.
The author of Revelation actually makes this claim:
Revelation 19:10 ESV Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
The testimony of Jesus is nothing other than the gospel message about the fulfillment of God’s purposes in Jesus Christ. Despite what else it is, the book of revelation is a call for the Christians in John’s age and our own to turn their minds and allegiance to Jesus as he has been explained by the apostles. For Christians today, this means the Jesus of the gospels.
The spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus. Another way to say this is that the point of prophecy is to make the message Jesus taught clear.
Leave a Reply