For most people, the book of Revelation is one of the most difficult books of scripture to conceptualize, let alone gain a full understanding. Yet it is one of the most important books of scripture for our particular time. Because of the enormity of events, people, creatures, and trying to make sense of all the symbolism, many people don't study it the way they should and the way God intended us to understand it.

The Rose Publishing PowerPoint slide show and companion study sheets / handouts provide a very good introduction and a basis to help most people get a good grasp on the subject matter. The first part of the slide show gives the historical setting and tells what the book of Revelation is about, how it's organized, themes of the book, etc.

The next segment discusses four different views of the book of Revelation; Historicist, Preterist, Futurist, and Idealist. It then provides a summary of how each view interprets the events of Revelation. There is an outline of seven sections, each dealing with seven prophetic events, such as the seven seals, seven trumpets, etc. Each of these seven sections are explained according to the four different views and a side-by-side comparison is made which helps illustrate the different views.

The slides are all laid out in a visually pleasing manner with lots of graphics and transitions within the slides to help the presenter move from point to point and topic to topic. The slideshow is provided in MS Office PowerPoint format. I use a Mac computer and do not have MS Office loaded on my computer. The native Mac slideshow software, Keynote, loaded the slideshow easily, but had some issues with the transitions in the individual slides, which were for the most part absent. However, I also have Open Office (free software suite) on my computer which not only loaded the slideshow without a hitch, but kept the formatting and slide transitions intact.

The book of Revelation is a hard nut to crack, because of all the historical, spiritual, and symbolic nuances, which is clearly evident by the fact that there are at least four different mainstream views on the book. Having said that, this slideshow presentation does a great job of providing a good summary and overview of Revelation.

If the intent of the slideshow was to provide you with a detailed interpretation of the book of Revelation with detailed events, names, and times for our day, then it fell short. If, on the other hand, it was intended to provide a historical background and summary / overview of the popular views / interpretations of Revelation to be used as an outline, then for me at least, it hit the mark well.

It is by no means a definitive work that reveals exactly what God wants you to know or glean from the book of Revelation, but it is a good starting point to begin an individual or group study of John's vision.

As far as usability, this slideshow would best be utilized by someone who has a proficient understanding of Revelation who can use each slide as the stepping stone in providing a fuller explanation of the topics covered, and not as the main content. It should be used as a visual outline for further insight and instruction. In that capacity, I feel it is a valuable resource.

Just FYI, I was given a free downloadable copy of "Understanding the Book of Revelation" presentation from Rose Publication, in exchange for my honest review. And honestly, at the end of the day, I am glad I have it and will use it to help others gain a better understanding of the events that I believe lie in our immediate future and are of utmost importance.

The book of Revelation has 22 chapters. My group is starting an 18 weeks session on the Study of Revelation. This PPT resource has a wonderful introduction that will definitely be useful in my class. There are 115 slides with one map used eight times with an arrow showing the locations of the seven churches and some repetition of images. The main focus of this resource seems to be the four view of Revelation: Historicist, Preterist, Futurist, Idealist. The worksheets include a very thorough chart for comparing these views. This is not the reason for my study of Johns vision. I think the author missed the mark by slighting the last three chapters in the book: Satans downfall and the description of heaven on earth when Christ returns to set up His kingdom. Of the 10 pages of worksheets, only two are fill in the blank questions and one page of Discussion questions. There are 3 pages of terms used in Revelation. This was concise and handy to use.

I was given this download of Understanding the Book of Revelation by Rose Publishing for my honest review. If you want information on the four views this is the resource for you. It was not in depth enough for my taste.

Excellent foundation for a bible class on the Book of Revelations. It would allow for more detail in the meaning and discussions.

The Book of Revelation is one of the most controversial books in the Bible. This book is one of the primary causes of major divisions between denominations. Despite the promise of being blessed as stated in Revelation 1:3, it is often misunderstood and causing many Christians to avoid reading it. Rose Publishing has produced a PowerPoint that explains the four viewpoints: Historicist, Preterist, Futurist, and Idealist. Additionally, it synopsizes the messages of the seven churches, seven seals, seven trumpets, seven symbolic histories, seven bowls, seven messages of judgment, and seven vision. I would recommend it to any theologians who teaches about prophecy especially when addressing the future of the Universal Church.

For personal study, the PowerPoint could be used as cliffs notes to obtain insight into the different viewpoints, events, and imagery expressed the writer of the Book of Revelation, John. However, if new to studying Gods word I would recommend that attending a biblical study class on prophesy or on the Book of Revelation. The Understanding The Book of Revelation PowerPoint provides discussion questions with answer keys included to review highlights of the study. The discussion questions reiterate the fundamentals of what the PowerPoint has offered. Overall, the PowerPoint provides an objective training and does not support one viewpoint over the other. As a course, it could be used by any denomination that utilizes the Holy Bible.