Chapter 1, Verse 1

by Tom Allen

The Book of Revelation is not about the destruction of the world. It is about the revealing of Jesus Christ in you. "Chapter 1, Verse 1" explores the manifestation of Christ within us by providing a verse by verse explanation of the symbolism found in the Book of Revelation. It explains how and why this last book of the Bible reveals the mystery of God, Christ in you. Here is the "return" of Jesus Christ, the one who said, "…I am with you always." Christ is revealed in us, to us and through us. Excerpt from 'Chapter 1, Verse 1': The scroll or ‘little book’ found in the right hand of the Lamb of God had writing on both the front and back of it. Interestingly, the paper of ancient times used papyrus reeds cut into strips and placed horizontally to dry. Once dry, more papyrus strips were laid at right angles and glued in place. Finally, after polishing, the paper was ready to use. Writing was done with the grain. When writing on both sides of the paper, as with the scroll, the writing on one side would be written at a ninety degree angle when compared to the opposite side, due to the grain of the paper. Whoever reads the scroll would have to, at times, turn it ninety degrees to understand it. The writing on both the front and the back of the scroll is similar to the way information about the revealing of Christ is given to us in the Book of Revelation. We have to look at Revelation from a different angle, a different perspective, if we are to understand its meaning. The Book of Revelation is like a stereo-gram picture, a picture hidden within a picture. On the surface, it paints an image of war, famine, death, and destruction. But when we change our focus, we will see the hidden picture, one of Christ manifested within his people.

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 28, 2010

Reviews

[Geoff Hansell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eyeopening

Symbolism in the bible is a hard concept to grasp, but Tom Allen has written a book about the most difficult book of the bible to grasp and placed difficult concepts well within our reach. This book is for anyone struggling in their walk. This book is for everyone! It certainly had a huge impact on me, God knows a lot more about us than we give him credit for.

[Valerie Caraotta · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have set your eyes on this book in the hopes of gaining greater clarity and practical application for today you have come to the right source. Author Tom Allen will masterfully help you gain a panorama view of God manifesting his differing roles in each of the 7 churches. The 7 stars, representative of the angels of the 7 churches, will live out their task in making Christ known in their particular roles.

As you are already aware of the heavy symbolism, it will be refreshing to gain first time knowledge on the seals, the trumpet, and Babylon. Interesting revelation to wet your appetite is that the pouring out of cups is the way we live our lives in service to God and others. The 144,000 mentioned in Rev. 7:4 is not literal but symbolizes the 12 tribes of 12,000 that represent the New Jerusalem.

Other fascinating information provided include the following:
- how our thinking and behaviors can make us the Harlot as well as the Bride
-how the tabernacle-outer, inner, and Most Holy place-symbolize our relationship with God
-significance of the Tabernacle articles

This study is not a verse by verse commentary as such but groups concepts and themes together to help make better sense of it comprehensively. Through it all you will know more of God's heart for His people and His longing for our affectionate move toward deeper intimacy. I recommend you reading this alongside your Bible and marking many words and passages. If you are a teacher this will be a treasure chest of revelation.

This is definitely a 5 star book and a wonderful Bible study aid.