The End Was Always The Beginning

Main Thought

From the very beginning, God’s desire was to be with His people. In the Garden of Eden, He walked with Adam and Eve in perfect relationship. No sin, no separation, no shame. That closeness was broken when sin entered the world. Yet the heart of God never changed. The story of Scripture - from Genesis to Revelation - is God’s pursuit to restore relationship with humanity. What began in the garden will eventually end in glory. God will once again dwell with His people in a renewed heaven and earth. The promise of Revelation 21 reminds us that God doesn’t discard what’s broken; He redeems and transforms it. His Kingdom is breaking out now through the advancement of the gospel. God is making all things new, and He is starting with us. We should commit ourselves to experiencing and extending God’s transformative work in and through our lives. One day, we’ll see that the end of the story is really a new beginning. We will walk in an eternal relationship with God that will never be interrupted again.

Main Passages

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

- Revelation 21:1-4, NLT

5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” 6 And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

- Revelation 21:5-7

17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life. 18 And I solemnly declare to everyone who hears the words of prophecy written in this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book. 19 And if anyone removes any of the words from this book of prophecy, God will remove that person’s share in the tree of life and in the holy city that are described in this book. 20 He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!”

- Revelation 22:17-20

Main Passages

1. Think about God’s desire to dwell with people. What does that reveal about His character and His heart?

2. Revelation 21:5 says, “I am making everything new.” What area of your life do you sense God wants to renew or transform right now?

3. In Revelation 22, we see that the “Bride of Christ” - the Church - joins in God’s invitation to say, “Come.” What can you do to extend God’s invitation to people you know? How can you be a part of extending God’s invitation to a larger segment of people like a workplace, a community, or the city of Las Vegas as a whole?

The Sound of Heaven's Hallelujah

Main Thought

Have you ever been in a stadium where thousands of voices erupt in one great cheer? The sound is overwhelming - every voice united in one emotion, one purpose, one celebration. In Revelation 19, John hears a sound greater than any stadium could hold: the roar of heaven itself. The saints, the angels, and the redeemed of all ages are lifting their voices in one glorious cry. “Hallelujah!” This passage gives us a glimpse of what worship will be like when God’s justice is complete and His kingdom is revealed. It is a preview of the ultimate victory celebration — when heaven rejoices because God has triumphed.

Main Passages

“After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: ‘Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,for true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.’”  

- Revelation 19:1-2

Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns.”

- Revelation 19:6 

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.”

-   Revelation 19:7 

“Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.” At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.””

- Revelation 19:9-10 

Discussion Questions

1. How can you show gratitude for God’s salvation in your daily life?

2. How does knowing that God reigns give you peace in uncertain times?

3. What can you do today faithful to Christ and ready for His return?

Worthy is the Lamb

Main Thought

The Book of Revelation gives us a breathtaking glimpse into the throne room of heaven. God is seated on the throne. He is holy, beautiful, sovereign, and worthy of our worship. Seeing God rightly inspires us to worship Him fully. True worship is all-encompassing: it includes music, art, the study of scripture, intentional rest, and the way that we live. Worshipping God fully, in turn, means seeing everything else rightly. Worship changes our perspective. We can see our lives - and the rest of the world - with God’s eternal victory in mind. This anchors our hope to the unchanging promise of eternity, even in the midst of a changing world.

Main Passages

At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.

- Revelation 4:2-3

'And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”'

- Revelation 4:8-11

And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

- Revelation 5:6-10

Discussion Questions

1. The Main Passages included sayings and songs of praise that are offered to God in Heaven. What words are used to describe God? Why?

2. What holds you back from worshiping God freely and fully, both at a worship service and in your daily life?

3. What can you do to worship God freely and fully this week?

Revelations 2-3: Bible Study

Opening Statement

Life Group Leaders, please read the following Statement to set expectations for your Life Group.

“Welcome to Life Group! Our goal is to be a place where anyone can belong, believe, and become the people God created us to be.

As we discuss, let’s focus on what God is teaching us through His Word and how it applies to our personal lives. Sharing is encouraged, but you may pass on a question if you’d like. Please be mindful of time so everyone has a chance to share. I’ll do my best to guide the conversation.

Let’s open in prayer and ask God to be with us .”

Read Revelation 2-3

Reflect on these questions

• Revelation 2-3 contains seven different descriptions of Jesus accompanying the address to each church. These descriptions reveal His power, victory, nature, and more. For example, they include: “the words of the first and the last, who died and came to life,” or “the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.”

1. Which one of these descriptions of Jesus is your favorite?

2. What do you think it means, or what does it reveal about Jesus?

• Laodicea was located near two other cities - Hierapolis, known for its hot, healing springs, and Colossae, known for its cold, refreshing mountain water. Laodicea had to pipe in water from miles away through an aqueduct. By the time their water arrived, it was lukewarm and mineral-heavy. It was famously unpleasant to drink.
  
  In Revelation 3:15–16, Jesus told the Laodicean church, “You are neither cold nor hot… because you are lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth.” He was using their water supply as an analogy for their spiritual condition - not spiritually refreshing or healing, but complacent, compromised, and ineffective.

1. What do you think spiritual lukewarmness is? What might cause a believer to drift into that kind of condition?

2. Why is being spiritually lukewarm harmful or dangerous?

Respond with faith in action

• The seven churches as a whole received commendation, correction, and comfort from Christ. Jesus’s words still speak to His followers today.

  1. Which word of commendation or correction feels most relevant to your walk with God? How can you apply it to your life?

  2. Which word of comfort is the greatest blessing to you?

Spoiler Alert!

Main Thought

When we hear the word “apocalypse,” we often think of disaster movies or end-of-the-world events. In Greek, apokalypsis means unveiling: pulling back the curtain so we can see reality clearly. It is a revealing - and that’s how we get the Book of Revelation. For the early church, Revelation was never meant to stir fear. It was meant to inspire confidence and hope. The center of the vision isn’t chaos but Christ.

The Book of Revelation begins with a spoiler: Jesus wins! His victory has been revealed, secured, and shared with His people. Because of this, we don’t struggle with uncertainty toward victory but we live from victory. Our present struggles - in our lives and in our world - cannot undo His finished work. Hardship and confusion will not have the last word. The Alpha and Omega has already spoken, and His word is victory.

Main Passages

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, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 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. 4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth…

- Revelation 1:1-5a, ESV

…To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail[b] on account of him. Even so. Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

- Revelation 1:5b-8 ESV

He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names.

- Philippians 2:8–9, NLT

Discussion Questions

1. When you think about the word “Revelation,” do you usually connect it with hope or with fear? How does this passage challenge or reshape your perspective?

2. Jesus is called the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of kings. Which of these titles gives you the most encouragement right now?

3. The spoiler of the gospel is that Jesus already wins. How would your response to today’s challenges change if you lived more fully in that reality?