Archive for May 22nd, 2009
May 31, 2009: John’s Vision of Heaven
The text for this lesson is Revelation 21:1–22:21.
Key Points
- Those who believe that salvation has been accomplished by the all-availing sacrifice of Jesus’ blood on the cross will bear the name of Christ written on their forehead in Holy Baptism, and will have the right to the tree of life.
- Law: If I do not believe in Christ as my Savior, I will not enter the gates of heaven.
- Gospel: I am baptized and believe in Jesus, the Lamb of God; He has written my name in His Book of Life, and I shall be saved.
Context
This is the acme of John’s Revelation, indeed, the crescendo of all the Scriptures. In many ways, it is also a digest or summary of the Bible, for in these two chapters is contained the teachings of sin and salvation, heaven and hell, Jesus and the Church, the Holy Trinity, and so forth. John plucks images, as if flowers, from various other books of the Old Testament and New Testament to weave this textual bouquet that pictures the inheritance of the saints.
