Week 1: Revelation, an introduction
Revelation 1: 9-20
This year we’ve been diving deep into some of the tougher and stranger parts of the Bible — Job, Philemon, and all sorts of “weird and wonderful” passages. And now, as the year draws to a close, we’re turning to Revelation: the most mysterious, confusing, and hope-filled book of them all.
Revelation has often been treated like a puzzle or a secret code. People have tried to pin 666 on politicians, leaders, even parliaments, and some have used it to predict the end of the world (always wrongly!). But Jesus Himself said that no one knows the day or the hour — not the angels, not even the Son, only the Father. Revelation isn’t about guessing dates or playing “end-times bingo.” It’s about God showing His people who He is and what’s really going on in the world.
It’s a bit like Job. Job asked, “Why is there suffering?” but God didn’t give him a neat answer. Instead, God pointed Job back to Himself — as wise, good, and ultimately in control. In the same way, Revelation doesn’t give us all the answers we might want about “when” or “who,” but it does give us eternal truths:
Jesus wins. His death and resurrection change everything.
This world is temporary, but God’s Kingdom is forever.
The pull of money, power, and pleasure won’t last — but life with Jesus will.
The church has an urgent mission: to share the hope of Jesus while there’s still time.
Revelation is sometimes strange, sometimes overwhelming, but it’s not meant to frighten us. It’s meant to give us hope. We live in the “in-between” — between what has been and what is to come — and Revelation reminds us that God is trustworthy, His Word is true, and His light shines even in the darkest places.
One of the most beautiful pictures comes near the end, when the New Jerusalem is described with foundations made of twelve precious stones. Back then, those choices seemed odd — why not diamonds? But today we know that when pure light shines through those exact stones, they explode into the colours of the rainbow. Diamonds, on the other hand, turn black. Nobody could have known that two thousand years ago. It’s a glimpse of how God’s Word holds truths far deeper than we realise — and of how His light transforms everything it touches.
Revelation isn’t about fear or confusion. It’s about hope, trust, and confidence in Jesus, the One who is the beginning and the end, the light in the darkness, and the ultimate victor.
You can find a study guide for this session here
Reflection Points
Asking the right questions – When we stop chasing “when” or “who” and instead ask, “What is God showing me about Himself?”, we find peace instead of fear.
Living in the in-between – Life right now is temporary, caught between the old and the new. Revelation reminds us that the story isn’t finished, and the best is yet to come.
Light in the darkness – Even when the world feels chaotic, Jesus is still victorious. His light cuts through the shadows and gives us hope that cannot be shaken.
Questions to Ponder
Where am I tempted to look for answers that God hasn’t promised to give me, instead of resting in who He is?
What might change in my daily life if I really believed that Jesus has already won the victory?
Who in my life needs to hear the hope of Jesus, and how could I share that with them this week?
Prayer Points
Trust – Lord, help me to trust You when things feel uncertain, and to remember that You are in control.
Hope – Jesus, fill my heart with the hope of Your victory so I can live with courage and joy, even in dark times.
Mission – Holy Spirit, give me boldness and love to share the good news of Jesus with those who don’t yet know Him.
Week 2: The Lamb Wins – Staying Faithful and in Love with Jesus
Revelation 2:1-7
Summary
Jesus has a lot to say to His Church, and He speaks through vivid, sometimes challenging imagery to guide, encourage, and correct. The letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 show us a picture of what it means to be His people, living in a world that’s messy, sometimes hostile, and full of distractions. These letters were written to real churches in specific cities, facing their own struggles under Roman rule, persecution, and false teaching. But the message carries timeless truths for all believers: Jesus sees us, knows us, and calls us to follow Him faithfully.
Jesus is alive, powerful, and in control. He holds the keys to life and death, to heaven and hell. His words are not just for a moment in history—they are for His Church today. He addresses both our strengths and our weaknesses, and He promises that those who overcome will share in His victory. The number seven reminds us of God’s completeness. Just as there were seven churches in Asia Minor, the message applies to the whole Church, everywhere and at all times.
Three big challenges stand out in these letters: false teaching, persecution, and spiritual poverty. Jesus reminds us not to compromise, to stay faithful, and to keep our love for Him alive. The church at Ephesus was hardworking and diligent, but their love had grown cold. They needed to refocus on the heart of their faith, not just the tasks of ministry. Laodicea seemed wealthy and comfortable, but Jesus said they were spiritually poor. He invites them—and us—into deep, intimate relationship with Him. He knocks at the door, wanting to come in, restore, and renew us.
Through these letters, Jesus shows us a pattern: He sees, He speaks, we respond, and we are restored. The theme is clear: the Lamb wins. Jesus wins through His sacrificial love, His death on the cross, and His resurrection. And as His followers, we are called to participate—not through force, but through love, faithfulness, and laying down our lives in obedience. In the face of trials, temptations, and distractions, we are reminded to keep our eyes on Him, allow Him to guide us, and trust in His victory.
You can find a study guide for this session here
Reflection Points
Faithfulness Over Performance – Are we motivated by duty, achievement, or love for Jesus? What does it look like to keep our first love alive in everyday life?
Spiritual Riches vs. Comfort – Are we relying on wealth, status, or comfort to give us security, or are we seeking spiritual richness in Jesus?
Invitation to Relationship – How open are we to letting Jesus in daily? Do we recognize His knocking, and do we respond with trust and intimacy?
Reflection Questions
When have you felt like the church at Ephesus—working hard but losing sight of love? How can you refocus on Jesus’ love in your daily routines?
When have you felt like Laodicea—comfortable or self-sufficient, yet spiritually dry? What practices help you stay spiritually alive and connected to Christ?
How do the promises of overcoming and sharing in Christ’s victory give you hope in the midst of challenges or persecution?
Prayer Points
For Renewal of Love: Ask Jesus to reignite a fresh love for Him in your heart, beyond duty or habit.
For Spiritual Vision: Pray for insight and discernment to see areas where you rely on the world rather than Christ, and for openness to receive His guidance.
For Faithfulness and Courage: Ask for courage to stand firm in faith, to love others even when it’s difficult, and to trust in the victory of Jesus in all circumstances.
Week 3
Worship and the Throne: Revelation 4&5
It often feels as though despair is stitched into the fabric of our world. We turn on the radio or scroll through the headlines and are instantly confronted with heartbreak — conflict, injustice, cruelty, division. The weight of it all can leave us feeling powerless and numb, wondering where hope has gone. Yet this experience is not new. Even in George Orwell’s time, long before the modern age of instant news, he could already see how bitterness and dishonesty had poisoned public life. Humanity’s restlessness and despair have always been part of the story.
But Revelation 4 and 5 lift our gaze to a reality that is far more enduring than any headline. There, John is shown a vision — not of chaos or ruin, but of a throne that never shakes. At the centre of the universe sits God, majestic and unchanging, surrounded by beauty that words can barely describe. The throne, mentioned seventeen times in just two chapters, stands as a reminder that power and authority ultimately belong not to kings, nations, or ideologies, but to God alone. In a world that feels unstable, this vision steadies the heart.
John’s revelation also comes from a profoundly human place. He isn’t an angel or an abstract messenger — he’s a person, struggling with fear and confusion, just as we do. God meets him in that space and pulls back the curtain to reveal what is always true: heaven’s throne is still occupied. That reminder is not just for John; it’s for every weary soul who needs to hear again, “I am still in control.”
Then the scene moves to worship — an unending song that fills heaven. The living creatures and elders never stop crying out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.” Their praise isn’t forced or mechanical; it’s the only fitting response to such glory. Worship here is not escape from the world’s pain but a declaration that God remains sovereign in the midst of it. When despair tempts us to retreat into distraction or cynicism, worship invites us to stand in the truth of who God is. It becomes a weapon — not to deny our pain, but to place it in the hands of the One who holds all things.
Even so, John weeps. He sees a scroll — God’s ultimate plan for creation — and realises that no one is worthy to open it. That moment captures something profoundly human: our longing to understand, our frustration when meaning seems hidden, our fear that perhaps there is no plan at all. But then comes the voice of hope: “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah has triumphed.” John looks — and instead of a lion, he sees a lamb, slain yet standing.
This is the great reversal at the heart of the gospel: victory through vulnerability, power through sacrifice. The one who reigns at the centre of heaven is not fierce and untouchable, but wounded and merciful. The Lamb has taken the scroll; the story is already complete. “It is finished” was not just a cry from the cross — it’s the eternal declaration of the throne room.
And so the song rises again. Heaven erupts in praise because redemption is not a future dream; it’s a finished reality. The Lamb who was slain is worthy, and all creation joins in to proclaim it.
When the next morning comes and the headlines are just as bleak, this vision remains. The throne hasn’t moved. The song hasn’t stopped. The scroll is still in the Lamb’s hands. Our restless hope finally finds its home — not in what we see around us, but in the One who reigns forever at the centre of all things.
You can find a study guide for this session here
✨ Three Reflection Points
Hope Has a Home:
Our longing for peace, justice, and stability finds no lasting rest in human systems — but only before the throne of God. Revelation shows us that hope isn’t naive optimism; it’s anchored in divine reality.Worship as Resistance:
In a despairing world, choosing to worship is an act of defiance. It’s saying, “You don’t have the final word.” Worship isn’t a distraction — it’s where despair loosens its grip and perspective returns.The Lamb at the Centre:
Power in God’s kingdom looks nothing like power in ours. The Lamb — scarred, humble, victorious — reigns at the centre. That changes how we view leadership, strength, and even suffering.
💭 Three Questions for Reflection
When the news cycle or your personal circumstances feel hopeless, where do you instinctively turn — distraction, despair, or worship?
What would it look like for you to live each day with the confidence that “the throne hasn’t moved”?
How might your hope deepen if you truly believed that the Lamb has already triumphed and holds the scroll — the story — of your life?
🙏 Three Prayer Points
For Anchored Hope:
Lord, when the world feels overwhelming, remind us that Your throne never shakes. Anchor our restless hearts in Your steady presence.For Worshipful Hearts:
Teach us to worship not just when life feels good, but when it hurts. May our praise become a weapon against despair and a witness to Your faithfulness.For a Lamb-Like Spirit:
Jesus, help us to reflect Your gentle strength — to lead, love, and live as You did: not with domination, but with self-giving grace.
Week 4: Revelation 12
The Battle Behind the Battles
Sometimes the hardest thing in life is the waiting — that space in between where you don’t yet know how things will turn out. Whether it’s illness, work, family, or grief, it’s that uncertainty that gnaws at the heart. The ache of not knowing. A phone call from a friend in the middle of writing, a friend battling a sudden illness, brings those words that echo for us all: “It’s the not knowing that’s the hardest.”
It’s easy to feel the same way when looking at the world — wars, disasters, divisions, suffering. So much pain, and no clear idea of how it can possibly be made right. Everything feels out of control. But there’s a difference between not knowing the future and not knowing the final result. It’s like watching the replay of a football match when you already know your team wins. You can still feel the tension when they miss, the frustration when they fall behind — but deep down, you’re calm. You know how it ends.
That’s the gift of Revelation. It isn’t a code to crack or a map to predict what’s coming; it’s a declaration of how it all ends. However fierce the battle, however wild the imagery, the truth stands firm: the Lamb wins. Evil can rage, chaos can roar, but the victory belongs to God.
In the vision of Revelation 12, a woman clothed with the sun gives birth while a dragon waits to devour her child. The woman represents God’s people, the child is Jesus, and the dragon is Satan — a picture of the struggle between good and evil. The dragon fights, angels rise to defend, but in the end he is thrown down. Heaven rejoices because the accuser’s voice has been silenced. The victory doesn’t come through human strength or strategy, but through the blood of the Lamb and the faithful witness of those who belong to Him.
It’s a breathtaking reminder that even when life feels dark or confusing, the outcome is already settled. The cross was the turning point. “It is finished” wasn’t a cry of defeat but of victory. Everything that still feels unresolved — the pain, the injustice, the fear — is only part of the story still playing out. The ending has already been written.
Evil still thrashes about, knowing its time is short, but it cannot overturn the result. God’s people are secure. The same God who guided Israel through wilderness and exile guards His people still. Revelation isn’t meant to frighten but to reassure. Life will still hold suffering and struggle, but nothing can unseat God from His throne or separate His children from His love.
So the invitation is to live in that assurance — to walk through uncertainty with quiet confidence, to trust that each hardship is temporary, and to rest in the truth that the Lamb has already triumphed. The end of the story is peace, restoration, and joy beyond imagining. And even now, in the middle of the match, there’s reason to hope — because the result is already decided.
You can find a study guide for this session here
✨Reflection Points
The waiting, the “not knowing,” often becomes the place where faith learns to breathe and trust deepens.
Knowing that the Lamb wins allows peace to settle even in the middle of chaos.
The world’s story is full of pain, but its ending is already one of love and victory.
💭 Questions
Where in life do things feel uncertain or unresolved, and how might hope in the final victory change your perspective?
What helps you remember that God is still in control when the world feels chaotic?
How can you live each day as someone who already knows the ending is good?
🙏 Prayer Points
For peace in the midst of waiting — that trust would replace fear in every unknown.
For a deeper awareness of Jesus’ finished work and the confidence that His victory is secure.
For courage to live as a person of hope, shining light in a world that desperately needs reassurance.
The Justice of God – Revelation 19:6-20, Matthew 22:1-14
🌿 Summary
This sermon dives into one of the big and sometimes uncomfortable topics — God’s justice — through Revelation 19:6–20 and Matthew 22:1–14. It’s part of a series that doesn’t shy away from the “weird and wonderful” parts of the Bible.
It begins by reminding us that the world won’t end because of nuclear war or climate collapse, but when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead. But that raises the question: what kind of judge is Jesus? The sermon gently dismantles the idea that God will weigh our good deeds against our bad and simply admit the “better people.” Instead, it paints a picture of God’s justice that’s rooted in grace and love — where the Judge himself takes our punishment so we can be forgiven and free.
Using vivid imagery from Revelation, it describes Babylon (human rebellion and corruption), the prostitute (spiritual unfaithfulness), and the beast (false saviours that promise security through power or money). These stand in contrast to Jerusalem (God’s faithful city), the Bride (the Church), and Jesus (the true King).
Then it connects that imagery to Jesus’ parable of the wedding banquet — the King invites everyone, but some refuse, and others come without the right clothes. The “wedding clothes” aren’t about good behaviour but about being clothed in Christ’s righteousness — something we receive, not earn. God’s justice is fully satisfied because Jesus took our punishment on the cross, offering us forgiveness and the chance to live as beloved children of God.
In the end, we’re all invited to one of two banquets: destruction or celebration. Jesus’ invitation is open to all — but it calls for a personal response. He is the King of kings, whose robe is dipped in blood — not as a mark of violence, but as a sign of sacrificial love. One day he will return to make everything new, to bring his people into eternal joy and freedom from all evil and pain.
You can find a study guide for this session here
💭 Three Reflection Points
God’s justice is inseparable from his mercy.
The cross shows that justice isn’t about “getting away with it” — it’s about God taking the cost of sin upon himself so that we can be restored.
The right clothes are a gift, not an achievement.
Righteousness is something we receive through Jesus, not something we earn through effort or comparison.
Every invitation deserves a response.
The wedding feast is open to all, but each of us has to decide whether we’ll say “yes” to the King’s invitation and let him clothe us in grace.
❓ Three Questions for Reflection or Discussion
What does God’s justice look like to you — and how does it differ from human ideas of fairness or revenge?
In what ways do we sometimes trust in modern “Babylons” — systems, pleasures, or securities — rather than God?
How can we live each day as people who are already “clothed” in Christ’s righteousness?
🙏 Three Prayer Points
Thanksgiving: Praise God for his perfect justice — that through Jesus, mercy triumphs over judgment.
Confession: Ask God to reveal the “Babylons” in your own heart — areas where pride, comfort, or power distract from him.
Commitment: Pray for courage to accept and live out God’s invitation daily — to wear the robe of Christ’s righteousness and reflect his love to others.
🌿 Week 6: The King Wins
Revelation 20: 1-15.
Revelation 20 isn’t an easy passage to face — with talk of dragons, judgment, and a lake of fire — but it isn’t really about fear. It’s about Jesus. It’s about his love, his power, and his promise to make everything right.
Revelation is “the revelation of Jesus Christ.” It’s not a code to crack or a map of world events, but a picture of Jesus revealed in glory — the one who holds history in his hands. It was written first to Christians who were being brutally persecuted, people who needed hope more than anything. John wrote to show them that evil doesn’t get the last word — Jesus does.
There are two big truths to hold on to here.
First, Jesus will do away with all evil — both the evil “out there” in the world and the evil “in here” within our hearts. The world can feel full of darkness, cruelty, and injustice, but God hasn’t turned away from it. One day, every act of violence, every abuse of power, every lie and cruelty will be brought to an end. But it’s not just the evil in the news; it’s the evil that lives quietly inside each of us — selfishness, pride, bitterness, the small cruelties we justify. We don’t need to be crushed by that reality, because Jesus came to deal with it. People long for freedom — not just freedom from the evil in the world, but freedom from the evil in themselves. And that’s exactly what Jesus offers: forgiveness, renewal, and a promise that one day there’ll be no more mourning, crying, or pain.
Second, there will be a judgment — but it’s a judgment that has already fallen on Jesus. God is just; he cannot overlook wrongdoing. There must be justice. But the breathtaking truth is that God himself steps down from the judge’s bench, takes off the robe, and bears the penalty in our place. That’s what the cross means. Jesus, the only innocent one, carries the guilt of everyone else so that forgiveness can be freely given. We are not only forgiven, we are justified — made right with God. It’s pure grace.
And that’s the heart of the message: God is love. Not angry, not spiteful, not waiting to punish. His justice and his love meet perfectly at the cross. For anyone who’s ever been told that God is harsh or hateful, Revelation reveals the truth of who God really is: patient, merciful, and good.
When Jesus returns, he’ll put everything right. Evil will be gone forever. Paradise will be restored. And those who have accepted his invitation will live in the light of his love, free from fear, forever.
You can find a study guide for this session here
💭 Three Reflection Points
The end of evil brings hope, not fear.
The promise that Jesus will destroy all evil isn’t about punishment — it’s about healing a broken world. Every injustice, every heartbreak, every wound will be undone.
Judgment has already fallen on Jesus.
God’s justice and love meet perfectly at the cross. The penalty for sin is real, but God himself took it, so that forgiveness could be real too.
God’s love drives out fear.
When we truly understand that “God is love,” fear fades. We no longer see him as distant or harsh, but as a Father who has gone to impossible lengths to bring us home.
❓ Three Questions for Reflection or Discussion
What does it mean to you that Jesus will one day “do away with all evil”?
Have you ever struggled with the idea of God’s judgment? How does it change when you picture the Judge stepping down to take your place?
How can we help others see God’s love clearly — especially those who’ve had him misrepresented to them?
🙏 Three Prayer Points
Thanksgiving:
Thank Jesus for taking our punishment and making us right with God — for love that went all the way to the cross.
Restoration:
Pray for those who feel weighed down by guilt, shame, or fear, that they would discover the freedom of knowing God’s perfect love.
Hope:
Pray for courage to live with hope in a dark world — to hold on to the promise that evil won’t win, because Jesus already has.