The book of Revelation is the last book in the Bible. But we might also say that Revelation is ‘last’ in the sense of being the least understood part of the scriptures. A good many Christians might regard the title of the book as a cruel joke. Instead of producing clarity, Revelation leaves people in a state of confusion. Other Christians have scrutinized the book of Revelation and have indeed found certainty. Yet their conclusions are often badly misguided – deeply out of step with the author’s intended meaning. This mixture of confusion and misguided certainty is a tragic loss, for the book of Revelation makes a tremendous contribution to the canon. It provides a majestic vision of God’s plan to finally rescue his creation from evil and injustice. The creator will indeed someday bring the world into alignment with his good purposes. The earth shall become the place of beauty, abundance, peace and joy that God always intended.
The main theme of the book of Revelation is the coming kingdom of God. In fact, the kingdom of God is the main theme of the entire Bible! So before we proceed, it’s vital that we have a clear understanding of God’s kingdom. The sad truth is that many, many Christians misunderstand the the nature of God’s kingdom. The failure to grasp this key concept makes it impossible for them to fully comprehend the book of Revelation. Disappointingly, many evangelical pastors speak often about the kingdom of God but fail to clearly define what they are talking about.
So let’s begin by offering a clear and concise definition: The kingdom of God is when the world functions and flourishes in the way that God intends. We shall shortly jump into the scriptures in order to support this definition. But please first note how radically different this definition is from the impression most Christians have in their heads. Let’s pretend that we are like spiritual mechanics, able to peer into people’s minds and see what they think when they hear the phrase “the kingdom of God.” It would likely go something like this: we now live upon the earth. When we die, those with faith in Jesus will be transported to some ethereal, otherworldly place called “heaven,” where they shall spend joyfully eternity in the presence of God himself. Sometimes this vision comes with certain embellishments. The entrance into heaven is demarcated by the “pearly gates,” where Saint Peter stands guard, ready to admit the faithful but deny entrance to the damned.
Virtually every Biblical scholar – no matter how liberal – agrees with this: the main theme of Jesus’ ministry was the coming Kingdom of God. All of the gospels emphasize this theme over and over again. For example, here is how Mark describes the inauguration of Jesus’ ministry: “Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. ‘The time has come,’ he said, ‘The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!'” The majority of Christians who read passages like this are liable to think that Jesus was affirming the framework they hold in their minds; that is, Jesus was announcing how people can leave the world behind and make the desired journey to that otherworldly sphere of heaven where they will receive a white robe and strum a harp while sitting upon the clouds and enjoying the perpetual sunshine.
Such confusion is made more acute for those reading the gospel of Matthew. Matthew is known as the most Jewish of the gospels. The Jews were so eager to respect the name of God that they would not utter it aloud nor write it down. Thus, rather than using the phrase “kingdom of God,” Matthew simply substitutes “the kingdom of heaven.” Consider Matthew 4:17: “From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.'” For many modern Christians, the use of the term ‘heaven’ further reinforces their notion that Jesus is declaring that they shall someday depart this dark and dreary world, heading for the glories of heaven. Yet this verse is functionally equivalent to the parallel passage in Mark. When Matthew says “kingdom of heaven,” this is no different than saying “kingdom of God.”
On a personal note, one of my favorite Christian songs is I’ll Fly Away. First written in 1929, I’ll Fly Away is one of the most popular gospel hymns of all time. It’s been recorded by a long list of musical luminaries including Alan Jackson, Jars of Clay, and Alison Krauss. Many readers no doubt know the lyrics well.
Some glad morning when this life is over, I’ll fly away
To a home on God’s celestial shore, I’ll fly away
When the shadows of this life have gone, I’ll fly away
Like a bird from these prison walls I’ll fly, I’ll fly away
Just a few more weary days and then, I’ll fly away
To a land where joy shall never end, I’ll fly away
This song beautifully summarizes the world of thought we’ve been discussing: the world we inhabit is a shadowy place of suffering. Thankfully, we can look forward to the glad morning when our lives are over and we can, like a bird escaping from a prison, soar off to heaven. Yet here’s the problem folks. I’ll Fly Away is an amazing piece of music, but it’s really lousy theology.
The grand story of the Bible – the story which concludes with the book of Revelation – does not describe an evacuation whereby the faithful depart this horrible world to spend eternity in heaven. Rather, the Biblical story is all about the rescue and redemption of the entire creation. This story involves heaven coming to earth. The kingdom of God – his loving and wise reign – will extend over all the the world. No longer will injustice, evil and death have mastery over us. Instead, the creation will flourish in the way God always intended. It will become a place of justice and joy, peace and security, beauty and abundance. God will ultimately give his people the gift of resurrection life – eternal life unmarred by sickness, sadness and tears. And this flourishing will not be limited to humanity alone. As the apostle Paul puts it, “All creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.”
This glorious vision sits at the heart of the Lord’s prayer. Jesus taught his disciples to pray “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” This single petition serves as a wonderful summary statement for the book of Revelation. Revelation is an elaborate description of how God’s kingdom will come upon the earth. Yet far too many readers of Revelation expect the opposite; they anticipate God snatching up the faithful while the world spins off into madness and destruction.
This mistaken notion has seized not only much of the church, but has seeped into the consciousness of the general public as well. The Greek word for revelation is apocalypse. If you look up the term ‘apocalypse’ in Google dictionary, you will find the following entry: “Complete, final destruction of the world, as described in the biblical book of Revelation.” There you have the problem in a nutshell. On one hand there’s the church folks humming I’ll Fly Away. On the other hand are non-Christians consulting Google. Both have assumed that the story of Christianity ends with the followers of Jesus carried away prior to the fiery incineration of the world.
Some might be thinking: is there really any significant difference between these two outcomes? Isn’t this just a matter of semantics? After all, no matter what view you take, isn’t there still a happy ending for God’s people?
By way of replay, let me tell the following (brief) story. In July 1938, a man named Douglas Corrigan piloted his single engine aircraft nonstop from California to New York. This in itself was nothing new; many aviators had already completed a flight across the continental US. But Corrigan received widespread attention mostly because his plane was a flying piece of junk. Moreover, the intrepid Corrigan was determined to continue his adventure by crossing the Atlantic Ocean to Ireland. Aviation authorities denied his request on the sensible grounds that they thought it suicidal to attempt a trans-Atlantic crossing in such an unreliable craft. They instead directed Corrigan to return to California. Apparently stymied, Douglas Corrigan took off from New York and headed west. However, not long after take off, he abruptly turned his plane around. 28 hours later, Corrigan touched down in Dublin, Ireland. The veteran pilot claimed he had made a ‘navigational error’ – no doubt with a wry smile on his face. Corrigan’s stunt earned him celebrity status in both America and Europe.
An amusing story right? Here’s my point: for Douglas Corrigan to reach Ireland instead of California involved a completely different flight plan. The same principle applies to the Christian life. Many Christians are hoping that we shall someday depart this weary world and fly away to heaven, like birds escaping from prison walls. Yet the Bible tells a very different tale; a narrative not about escaping the world, but about the rescue of the world. As we shall see, these are radically different destinations, involving very different flight plans.
