Basic Message of Revelation
The Book of Revelation serves as a call to action for Christians during an increasingly tense time of conflict between the Christian religion and the Roman Empire. Revelation goes further than any other literary work to demonstrate God’s wrath which at the time was designed to urge Christians to maintain their faith as a trying time approaches The message of the book as a whole can easily be lost in the intense imagery and fantastic happenings throughout the course of the prophecy. However, when broken down into its most basic state, the message correlates heavily with that of the other books of the Bible. Revelation served two purposes to its readers: reinforce the original teachings of Jesus and his apostles, and warn the population that there will be a persecution of the Christians by the Roman Empire.
The introduction and conclusion of the Book of Revelation emphasize that a time of judgment is coming soon. The warning further states that Christians must remain faithful to God in order to be rewarded. The second and third chapters of Revelation are composed of letters sent to seven churches in order to prepare them for the time of testing. Each church received a letter in which they were ridiculed or praised, ultimately however each city was given a specific test and those who passed the test would be the ones who receive eternal blessings. The seals, trumpets, and bowls forecast that there would be intense and increasingly disastrous political and cosmic woes that will lead to damnation. These woes serve to punish those unfaithful to God and warn them to repent. Examining these sections of the text shows John encouraging readers to remain faithful to God and not to waiver in their commitment to him. This reflects the teachings of Jesus and the apostles who taught their followers that God should be worshipped and praised alone. Once stripped of the literary complexities, the message in this section of Revelation is in tune...