Categories
Books of the Bible

Revelation

The book of Revelation was written by John, most likely the disciple John (who also wrote the John, First John, Second John, and Third John. Revelation is about the apocalypse. Revelation is the second apocalyptic book in the Bible; the first is Daniel.

The book starts with an introduction in chapter one, laying the foundation for the rest of the book.

Chapters 2 and 3 contain seven visions or messages for the churches in seven cities. There strengths, weaknesses, struggles, and triumphs are illustrative to all Jesus‘ followers.

The remaining chapters (4 through 22) paint an imaginative and vivid picture of the end times, showcasing the power, majesty, and awesome might of God the Father and his Son, Jesus. This should be our primary focus when reading this passage.

Although much time and effort has been given to study and interpret the meaning of these chapters and how close we might be to the end of the world, the Bible makes it quite clear that this is not for us to know (Acts 1:7).

Therefore, read these chapters for the joy they provides, the awe they elicit, and the hope they offer.

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.

Categories
Bible

4 Johns but 1 Mark

In “Another Man with Two Names” we talked about a guy known as John Mark. Although no one knows why he’s called John Mark, it does distinguish him from other men in the Bible named John.

In addition to John Mark, I count four guys in the Bible with the name of John:

It seems there is only one guy called Mark. Mark is mentioned eight times in the New Testament (three times as John Mark, twice as Mark, but referring to John Mark, and three times as Mark, likely referencing John Mark.)

Lastly, John Mark (sometimes called Mark) may have been the author of the book of Mark. Wouldn’t it be confusing if we called his book John-Mark, instead?

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.

Categories
Bible

What is Eternal Life?

The phrase “eternal life” occurs 42 times in the Bible. What exactly then is eternal life?

Some suggest eternal life is synonymous with heaven. If we believe in Jesus, we will go to heaven when we die. That is eternal life.

That’s a good start to our understanding of eternal life, but that’s not all there is to it; there’s more.

As I read the Bible, I see eternal life beginning now, here in this world. We learn this from the apostle John, whose references to eternal life are often present tense.

When we follow Jesus, eternal life begins immediately, right now, today. Eternal life begins here on earth through Jesus and continues into heaven when our physical bodies die.

If you follow Jesus, you cab enjoy eternal life today.

[See verses about eternal life in the NIV Bible. Also see John 5:24, John 3:14-21, John 5:39-40, and John 3:34-36.]

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.