Where John’s Story Begins

Last updated on: March 13, 2014 at 12:05 am by Scot McKnight

Where John’s Story Begins 2014-03-12T06:38:18-05:00 Scot McKnight

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Book of Revelation has perhaps the most radical vision of the Story of God in the whole Bible. But that Story counters the story told by Rome, which, as I wrote in our last post,

The fundamental idea then is that the gods gave the world Rome; they gave the world Rome as a blessing and those who are in line with Rome will experience the blessings of the gods. Rome was all mighty and any rebellion was death — Rome ties together imperial power and divine blessing. To question Rome was to question God.

So what is John’s Story? David DeSilva, in Unholy Allegiances: Heeding Revelation’s Warning, sketches that Story and it is the Story the Christian is to tell and indwell. The Story is discovered by revelation and we learn the Story when the skies crack open to see what is really going on in the cosmos, and what is going on all begins in the Throne Room of God, and we glimpse the center of this Story in Revelation 4 and 5.

At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. 3 And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne. … 9 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say…

5:1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” 6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. 8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. 9 And they sang a new song, saying…

This is a cosmic vision, or a Story of the cosmos, and the Story begins with God on the Throne and the Lamb on the Throne, so the Story of John counters the Roman story because the emperor is thrown from the throne and God is enthroned and the Lamb is enthroned. Not the might of sword but the victory of the Lamb is the Story the church tells the Roman world. DeSilva sketches how this Throne Room Story begins to assume control of the cosmos for the sake of the People of God (too much to sketch here). This requires a battle against those who want allegiance that transcends allegiance to God and the Lamb.

The emperors, the city of Rome, all of it gets a new storied context of rebellion against the one true God. Babylon is all that needs to be said: the four beasts of Daniel 7 are meshed in John’s Story to form a monstrous beast and the result is Babylon the whore. Babylon becomes in John’s Story a wasteland.

Revelation, then, is a most practical book that teaches us to begin at the Throne Room where God rules and where the Lamb rules and, then, looking out onto the world to see the whole cosmos in light of that Throne Room. That is, the whole cosmos is judged by whether or not it worships the God of the Throne Room in the image of the Lamb who suffers and brings victory through the cross and resurrection.

John asks us to ask: “How do our country’s economic practices, political entanglements, and ideologies look when measured up against the Israelite prophets, Jesus’ teachings and example, and John’s critique of his own imperial context?” (71).

Revelation

Previous Post

March 12, 2014

The Best Basketball Bench Ever

Next Post

March 13, 2014 Unwholesome Complexity (RJS)

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Acts of the Apostles Adam Advent Anabaptism Angels Anglican Apologetics Atonement Baptism BCP Prayers Bible Biblical Studies Birds Blogging Bloglossary Bonhoeffer Books Calvinism Christianity Church Church History Coffee Colossians Commentary Recs Conversion Creation Creeds Culture Death Ecclesiastes Economics Education Embracing Grace Emergent Emerging Movement Eschatology Essays Ethics Eucharist Evangelicalism Family Fasting Fathers Fellowship of Differents Footsteps Tour Fun and Whimsical Gospel Grace Happiness Heaven Hell Holy Spirit Irenaeus James Jesus Jesus Creed Job Justification Kingdom of God Law Lectures Lent Liberalism Love and Marriage Mabanteneni Manhood Mary Miracles Missio Alliance MissioLife Missional Missional Jesus Movies and Film New Perspective Northern Seminary OneLife Origins Project Orthodox Parables Pastor's Spouse Pastoring and Leading Pastoring and Preaching Patristics Paul Paul-John Tour Pharisees Pietism Political Theology Prayer and Formation Preaching Problems for Faith Psalm 119 Psalms Public Issues Purgatory Religions Resurrection Revelation Romans Rule of JCreed Science and Faith Sermon on the Mount Sports Ten Commandments Theology Third Way Top Ten Lists Translations Uncategorized Universalism University Ministry Way Out Weekly Meanderings Wisdom Women and Ministry Work Worship Writing & Blogging Youth Ministry

Select a Month July 2021 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 0000

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What is the main structure of Lamentations?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Ten parables Six sermons Twelve genealogies Five acrostic poems