Content and Encounter

As 2025 draws to a close, I revisited a draft from earlier this year, marking my progress through studying the second half of the Book of Revelation.

I did the entire book study in 2015, when BSF first made the Chinese version of the study available. It was also a completely new experience for me to rely on the Chinese version of the Bible for my study. Many chapters are challenging due to their visions of conflict and apocalyptic themes, and I found them more challenging to read through both versions of the biblical texts.

After the book of John, the 2024-2025 BSF returned to the book of Revelation again. Early this year (2025), I was looking forward to resuming the second half of the book after the holiday break. As the study became more timely due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, as well as the situation in Gaza. Together with other global concerns, although I managed to complete my homework and contribute to group discussions in class, week after week, I know that I was distracted.

Encounters Along the Way

In March, our church launched the theme, ‘His Life For Mine’, to celebrate the Resurrection Sunday.  BSF class concluded the study on Revelation 19, dated Thursday, April 17 2025. Little did I know the word ‘Hallelujah’ appears four times in the entire New Testament, and all in this very chapter. I was moved to tears on Sunday, April 2025, when the worship team sang “Hallelujah” for several minutes, leading us in worship. On the same Sunday evening, our local time, Pope Francis delivered his final Easter Message from the Vatican, and was promoted to heaven the next day, according to CNN. His passing resonated deeply, reminiscent of Psalm 116:15, which states, ‘Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His Saints.’ I only found out that 2025 is a Jubilee, a Holy Year, marked by Pilgrimages as is Catholic tradition.

I felt a deep connection to his passing, having seen him twice in person from the legendary balcony at St. Peter’s  Square. The first was in 2013, when my husband and I travelled to Rome for Christmas. We couldn’t believe it – only by my dear God’s grace were we able to find seats in the Square for the midnight Mass.  Pope Francis was newly elected and, for the first time, leading the service earlier than planned due to illness. The next day, we saw him in person on that legendary balcony as the Swiss Guard paraded below. We heard the new Pope’s first Easter Message to the world as Pontiff. On our ride to Rome, the taxi driver said to us, ‘We finally have a people’s Pope.’

Ten years later, in 2023, we promised to visit our friend in Florence after spending Christmas Eve in Rome. It was a freezing night, no Jingle Bells, no Christmas carols, no flashing neon lights – only the solemn toll of church bells and stars shimmering in the deep, dark-blue sky. Perhaps that was the most authentic Christmas spirit I’ve ever experienced. Early the next morning,  we made our way to the Square. This time, we found seats closer to the Balcony. It was heart-wrenching to witness Pope Francis’ frailty, yet moving to feel the palpable presence of God’s sustaining power as it carried him through the blessing. Just before my first tear fell, reminding me of 2 Timothy 2:21, that God always equips those He calls to do the good work. I hadn’t realised how much Pope Francis’ pastoral presence meant in my spiritual life. I walked with a different heart and stirred emotions; I was still searching for the Word. Has anything changed? Or had I?

In August 2024, the BSF kicked off the book of Revelation. In September, the Pope visited Singapore for the first time, leading a Papal Mass for over 50,000 local people and participating in ‘interfaith dialogue’. I saw him on local news and felt that something special was happening. I was emotional, as if his journey were a part of my own life. In 2024, for Christmas, we didn’t travel, and it’s definitely not a coincidence that we watched the movie ‘Conclave ‘, a gripping film about the election of the new Pope.

Anchor in the Word

The 29-week, in-depth, verse-by-verse study concluded in May 2025. There are twenty-two chapters, and a little over 400 passages of scripture according to the King James Version. Homeletically, the content of the Revelation unveils  Jesus Christ, who entrusted John to testify  to what must take place  (Rev. 1:1-2) before HE proclaims His soon return (Rev. 22:20).

One heated discussion in class was on why Jesus’s robe was stained with Blood. Later, the lecture explained that the blood represents the sacrifice on the Cross for Jesus, the Son of  Man, and our redemption. It also symbolises God’s judgment, avenged upon her for the blood of His servants'(Rev. 19:2; 18:24 & 11:7). The footnote referenced Isaiah 63:1-6, which was added for scriptural understanding.

In Doubt or In Debt

I admit that I am constantly weak in spirit and shallow in knowledge of God and His Word. Doubting, I wonder how I can be fit to meet my King on that day. My dear friend Ann sent me a link to an old hymn from 1883 – ‘I Know Whom I Have Believed’ sung in Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles. I must have listened to it more than ten times, weeping through it, raising a silent Hallelujah.

Then one quiet morning, Romans 1:14 came and stirred my spirit. ‘I am a debtor to the Greeks, and to …both to the wise and the unwise.’  In completing the study of the book of Revelation, I shared Paul’s indebtedness to Jesus, sharing the good news during his time, and I felt a sense of urgency and responsibility to live out my faith and share the love of Jesus with others, for we are in the beginning of the final time frame.