There's a song out right now that gets in your head and won't get out. It's called, simply enough, "Happy," by Pharrell Williams. It's pretty catchy, upbeat, simple, and even a bit refreshing. I love the lines in there, "Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof... Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth!" My kids love that song.
Having been a musician most of my life, I can also see why it would be easy enough to be critical of it. It is pretty simple, musically speaking. Duple meter. F, B-flat, C, B-flat, and back to F. C sharp, C minor, D sharp, then F on the chorus. There's a bridge in there too, but I'm getting bored explaining this. And most anyone reading this have now completely lost interest in my explanation of the song and are thinking, "Just enjoy the song!" Or, if you're a musician yourself, you are checking out the song to see if I'm right. You're no longer happy listening to Happy.
Which leads me to Revelation (huh?)... especially 1:1-3 again. Three days now, three verses. Might set a land speed record here soon!
At times, I've been tempted to boycott most of the presentations on this book for a couple of reasons. First, it seems like a lot of people seem to forget the very first part of the book, that it's supposed to be a "Revelation of Jesus Christ." It's about His victory, accomplished, experienced, and already real. It's not about figuring out dates and numbers. That plays into understanding the revelation, but it's not the ultimate purpose of the book.
Second, it's supposed to make you happy. I bet many have never thought of it this way, but it says it right there in verse 3. "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near." The word there for happy is "makarios" in Greek, which is what John wrote this in. We like to say "blessed" in church world. Blessed usually conjures up images of success in our minds, or we get a blessing at church. We may even say people can be blessed but not happy. Wrong. That's not what the word means. It means "blessed, happy."
Now, happiness isn't biblically something that just makes you giddy and smiley. It's deeper than that. It's purpose and direction and peace. It's intimacy with God. It's not just a feeling of euphoria. It's a state of being. But happy is still happy!
Too often I feel like the conversations in the church, or among church members, turn into diatribes about the woes of the world, and how we can tell we're near the end because of how awful things are. People speak about it and bemoan it and talk about how we're being persecuted all over the world (and we haven't seen anything yet!).
Can this possibly be right? Are we supposed to have a sense of impending doom or impending victory?
Happy. If you look closely at the language of verse 3, it's telling. You're happy if you intimately know, understand, and proclaim this prophecy. You're happy if you hear and understand this prophecy. Why? Because, Jesus' final victory is imminent.
It's imminent to us. It was imminent from John's too. What's the deal with that anyway? He wrote this stuff down nearly 2,000 years ago!
Maybe we can't see it clearly, but we have to remember it's reality to Jesus, and it's His revelation. Why can we be happy? Because Jesus' final victory is reality. It has been since it was written down. It was before then. To a Kingdom where time does not exist (as we understand time to exist at least), victory is now! It is achieved!
So, do I read and speak of Revelation as though I'm happy about it? Or scared?
Am I worried about a future with scary beasts and plagues and abuse, as one without hope might be? Or am I excited about the victory?
Do I get worked up over identifying the beast and his mark, knowing who the image and the dragon and all those crazy things are? Understand I don't dismiss this as unimportant, but what about this perspective: Do I see these things and know who the vanquished foe is and cling with eagerness to the anticipation of Jesus' victory?
Do I see impending pain as a follower of Jesus, or am I more like the church John wrote to (who was experiencing abuse even as they heard of this Revelation)... do I see imminent victory?
Do I live my life fretting over behaviors, deeds and misdeeds, and whose mark I'll receive? Or do I live my life happy in Jesus?
Lord Jesus... I want to be so happy in You that even this atmosphere and earth I inhabit cannot contain it! Show me and lead me to celebrate Your victory: the cross, the empty tomb, the ascended Christ, the poured out Holy Spirit, and Your return. It is reality! May I live as though it is true!
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