Scripture Reading
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place.
He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the
testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy,
and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near. - Revelation 1:1–3
• According to these verses, what is the origin of the book of Revelation? What is its purpose?
Revelation 1:1–3 states that God the Father gave this revelation to Jesus Christ, who in turn made it known to the
Apostle John through an angel. God gave this revelation to the servants of Jesus to show them “the things that
must soon take place.” Other aspects of the purpose of this book are that it would serve as a revelation “of Jesus
Christ”—that is, to reveal Christ Himself—and that it might impart blessing to those who read it and put its teaching
into practice.
During the Video
The Significance of the Book of Revelation
• What is the connection between the book of Revelation and blessing?
The opening verses of Revelation declare that those who read the words of this prophecy aloud, those who hear
them, and those who keep them are all blessed. Dr. Godfrey expresses his hope that as a result of this study of
Revelation, you will be blessed in your understanding of God’s Word and in your efforts to live faithfully for Him.
• How will Dr. Godfrey not be approaching Revelation during this teaching series? What will be part of his approach?
In this teaching series, Dr. Godfrey will not be approaching Revelation as a puzzle book, as a code to be cracked,
or as a book that is incomprehensible. Instead, he will approach Revelation through the lens of how God is
speaking blessing to His people in every generation. This approach will view Revelation as a whole, coherent
message.
Approaches to the Book of Revelation
• What four basic approaches to Revelation does Dr. Godfrey mention? What distinguishes each approach?
One interpretive approach to Revelation is the preterist approach, which sees the book as having already been
mostly or completely fulfilled by events that took place surrounding the destruction of the temple in AD 70. A second
approach to Revelation is the church-historical approach, which sees the book as a prophecy about the whole
history of the church, century by century, from the ascension of Christ to His second coming. A third approach is the
futurist approach, which views most of Revelation as foretelling future events that have not yet taken place. Finally,
Dr. Godfrey mentions a fourth approach that could be called the idealist school, the spiritualist school, or the
present-blessing school. This approach views the book as describing what is taking place throughout the history of
the church in every generation, culminating in the return of Christ.
• Which of these four approaches to Revelation is Dr. Godfrey going to follow in this teaching series? What books
does he mention that also take this approach?
Dr. Godfrey will follow the fourth approach, which he describes as the present-blessing school, in this teaching
series. Other examples of this approach in Reformed scholarship include William Hendriksen’s More than
Conquerors, G.K. Beale’s The Book of Revelation, and Dennis Johnson’s Triumph of the Lamb.
The Structure of the Book of Revelation
• How did Dr. Godfrey’s outline of the book of Revelation come about? How is this outline organized?
In his study of Revelation, Dr. Godfrey paid careful attention to how the book presents itself and kept noticing the
recurring pattern of sevens throughout the book. The more he noticed this theme, the more he began to suspect
that this theme of seven is the controlling structure of the book. As a result, he will be arguing in this teaching series
that Revelation consists of seven major cycles, each with seven subpoints.
After the Video
• Which of the four approaches to the book of Revelation is most familiar to you? Which of them seems most
strange?
The answer to this question should name one of the four main interpretive approaches (preterist, church-historical,
futurist, or present-blessing) that you have interacted with the most and one of the four views that you find, or have found, particularly difficult to embrace or understand. In your answer, there should be a definition of this approach
based on the lecture.
• Does everyone agree on a basic structure or outline for the book of Revelation? Do you think this is helpful or
harmful? Explain your answer.
Dr. Godfrey shared how he approached his friend Dr. Dennis Johnson to ask if it was appropriate for him to come
up with his own outline of Revelation. Dr. Johnson replied, “Everybody has their own outline of the book of
Revelation. Why shouldn’t you be able to have yours?” One benefit of this plurality of outlines is that it shows a
commitment on the part of many believers to studying this book for themselves and forming their own conclusions.
In his efforts to outline this book, Dr. Godfrey was careful to let Revelation speak for itself rather than imposing a
man-made structure on it.
• The book of Revelation is the revelation of Jesus Christ. What should you then anticipate in this study on
Revelation?
Because the book of Revelation is “the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:1), you should anticipate gaining a fuller
picture of who Jesus is through studying it. The book of Revelation is the revelation from Jesus about Jesus. It is
the testimony of Jesus Christ, and it speaks directly to His church.
The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place.
He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the
testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy,
and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near. - Revelation 1:1–3
• According to these verses, what is the origin of the book of Revelation? What is its purpose?
Revelation 1:1–3 states that God the Father gave this revelation to Jesus Christ, who in turn made it known to the
Apostle John through an angel. God gave this revelation to the servants of Jesus to show them “the things that
must soon take place.” Other aspects of the purpose of this book are that it would serve as a revelation “of Jesus
Christ”—that is, to reveal Christ Himself—and that it might impart blessing to those who read it and put its teaching
into practice.
During the Video
The Significance of the Book of Revelation
• What is the connection between the book of Revelation and blessing?
The opening verses of Revelation declare that those who read the words of this prophecy aloud, those who hear
them, and those who keep them are all blessed. Dr. Godfrey expresses his hope that as a result of this study of
Revelation, you will be blessed in your understanding of God’s Word and in your efforts to live faithfully for Him.
• How will Dr. Godfrey not be approaching Revelation during this teaching series? What will be part of his approach?
In this teaching series, Dr. Godfrey will not be approaching Revelation as a puzzle book, as a code to be cracked,
or as a book that is incomprehensible. Instead, he will approach Revelation through the lens of how God is
speaking blessing to His people in every generation. This approach will view Revelation as a whole, coherent
message.
Approaches to the Book of Revelation
• What four basic approaches to Revelation does Dr. Godfrey mention? What distinguishes each approach?
One interpretive approach to Revelation is the preterist approach, which sees the book as having already been
mostly or completely fulfilled by events that took place surrounding the destruction of the temple in AD 70. A second
approach to Revelation is the church-historical approach, which sees the book as a prophecy about the whole
history of the church, century by century, from the ascension of Christ to His second coming. A third approach is the
futurist approach, which views most of Revelation as foretelling future events that have not yet taken place. Finally,
Dr. Godfrey mentions a fourth approach that could be called the idealist school, the spiritualist school, or the
present-blessing school. This approach views the book as describing what is taking place throughout the history of
the church in every generation, culminating in the return of Christ.
• Which of these four approaches to Revelation is Dr. Godfrey going to follow in this teaching series? What books
does he mention that also take this approach?
Dr. Godfrey will follow the fourth approach, which he describes as the present-blessing school, in this teaching
series. Other examples of this approach in Reformed scholarship include William Hendriksen’s More than
Conquerors, G.K. Beale’s The Book of Revelation, and Dennis Johnson’s Triumph of the Lamb.
The Structure of the Book of Revelation
• How did Dr. Godfrey’s outline of the book of Revelation come about? How is this outline organized?
In his study of Revelation, Dr. Godfrey paid careful attention to how the book presents itself and kept noticing the
recurring pattern of sevens throughout the book. The more he noticed this theme, the more he began to suspect
that this theme of seven is the controlling structure of the book. As a result, he will be arguing in this teaching series
that Revelation consists of seven major cycles, each with seven subpoints.
After the Video
• Which of the four approaches to the book of Revelation is most familiar to you? Which of them seems most
strange?
The answer to this question should name one of the four main interpretive approaches (preterist, church-historical,
futurist, or present-blessing) that you have interacted with the most and one of the four views that you find, or have found, particularly difficult to embrace or understand. In your answer, there should be a definition of this approach
based on the lecture.
• Does everyone agree on a basic structure or outline for the book of Revelation? Do you think this is helpful or
harmful? Explain your answer.
Dr. Godfrey shared how he approached his friend Dr. Dennis Johnson to ask if it was appropriate for him to come
up with his own outline of Revelation. Dr. Johnson replied, “Everybody has their own outline of the book of
Revelation. Why shouldn’t you be able to have yours?” One benefit of this plurality of outlines is that it shows a
commitment on the part of many believers to studying this book for themselves and forming their own conclusions.
In his efforts to outline this book, Dr. Godfrey was careful to let Revelation speak for itself rather than imposing a
man-made structure on it.
• The book of Revelation is the revelation of Jesus Christ. What should you then anticipate in this study on
Revelation?
Because the book of Revelation is “the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:1), you should anticipate gaining a fuller
picture of who Jesus is through studying it. The book of Revelation is the revelation from Jesus about Jesus. It is
the testimony of Jesus Christ, and it speaks directly to His church.