Revelations 22: Trustworthy and True

The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”
“Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book.”

I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!”

Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."

"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
 -Rev. 22:6-13 NIV

Years ago, I had a friend tell me, "There are no honorable people left."  He was referring to those in the business environment, but it seems to me that can be said of the whole of society now days.  History has shown that the human race cannot be trusted.  We all operate out of our own selfish motives. Even those of us who claim to be followers of Christ.  There is only one who is honorable, worthy of honor.  There is only one who is trustworthy and true.

We have a tendency to look at the Bible in respect to ourselves.  Am I living the life I am called to?What are the promises for me?  How am I supposed to live?  How do I get healing?  How do I become prosperous?   How do I remain faithful?  What is going to happen to this world?  And on and on and on.  But, Revelations, as John states in Chapter one, and I would assert, the entire Bible, is not about us.  It is God's story.  It is the story of a being with such power and majesty that the ancients found themselves unable to utter his name.   It is the story of creatures who would forever try to usurp his authority, who would forever imagine that they were operating on the same plane.  It is the story of a creator and his unfailing love for his unfaithful creation. 

Yet for all our misappropriation of the true story, one fact remains.  These words are trustworthy and true...he is the Alpha and Omega, he is the First and the Last,  he is the Beginning and the End and he is coming soon!

Revelations 10: Hallelujah!

The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.” And the twenty–four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. -Rev. 10:15-16 NIV

The Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's Messiah is nothing compared to the praises which will be heard in heaven at that moment in time when the kingdom of this world, as it has been known for centuries, is transformed into the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ.  All other earthly kingdoms will pale by comparison.  The Babylonians, the Roman Empire, the Aztecs, Great Britain, even the United States, any and every civilization that has ever existed, will become insignificant, will not even be retained in memory.  There will only be one reality, the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and those of us who are believers get to be part of that everlasting kingdom.  Bask in that for just a moment.  Close your eyes and imagine the heavenly choruses singing and praising God.  Imagine yourself surrounded by your loved ones, each of them enthralled by the presence of God and his Son.  Imagine the heavenly orchestra, the trumpets, the drums, the harps, playing music more glorious than any that has been conceived on this earth, with a range of notes we cannot comprehend.  There is nothing on this earth that can compare. Handel caught a glimpse of it when he penned The Messiah, but it was only a glimpse. There is nothing under the sun that compare to being in the presence of the Creator and his Son. Hallelujah!

Revelation 9: There's Still Hope

And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. The number of the mounted troops was two hundred million. I heard their number. The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths. The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury. The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts. -Rev. 9:20-21 NIV

It's hard to believe that, even after witnessing a third of mankind being killed, that people will still not repent of their evil ways.  So, it should not be surprising to see any society, even one such as ours, conceived with mostly Godly intentions, pursuing a path of destruction.  God has always known the hearts of his creation.  From the moment that Satan fell from heaven, all of God's creation has been subject to his temptation, the temptation to believe that this life is all there is, that there is nothing else, and for many, that there is no redemption.  Some realize that there is redemption but refuse to pay the price of giving up the ability to live their life the way they choose.  Others, who for one reason or other, were not born at the right time, in the right place, or into the right circumstances, may not know that there is any other way.  These are the ones we should be pursuing as God pursued us.  They are the suicidal, the addicts, the self destroyers, the ones who see themselves without hope. Like all of us, who came to belief out of dire circumstances, they are the ones to whom the gospel offers hope even for this life.

Revelations 6: It Is Well

The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” - Rev.6:14-17 NIV

Revelations 6:14 brings to mind the last verse of the old hymn, It is Well.

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul. - Horatio G. Spafford, 1873

Without reading the verses that follow in Revelations, the last phrase doesn't have much meaning.  Hearing the trump sound and seeing the Lord descending from the clouds should be a glorious day, not one where we have to proclaim 'even so, it is well with my soul'.  The verses that follow, however, paint a story of destruction, the enormity of which has yet to be seen.  Everyone, the rich, the mighty, the kings and generals, the poor, the slaves, none will be immune from the destructions that will accompany that great day of wrath.  The day when everyone cries out for the rocks and mountains to fall on them to hide them from God's judgment.  This must be the scene that Horatio Spafford imagined when he penned the words, 'even so'. 

It's a horrible thing to contemplate the enormity of God's wrath which will be poured out on the unbelievers.  It's even more difficult to contemplate if some of those unbelievers are our own friends, family, and acquaintances.  For believers, the carnage of God's wrath will be overshadowed by being in the presence of the one we love.  We will truly be able to say it is well with our soul.  That thought should not lessen our efforts now to bring all those we love into the light that will save and protect them from the events to unfold. 

We live in a world where many are hoping for Christ's soon return.  I share that hope, but I pray that it is not before all of my loved ones accept the salvation accorded by Christ and his sacrifice on the cross.  In a lot of cases, that is not going to happen without some miraculous intervention on God's part, so I pray daily for God's mercy.  Then when the clouds roll back with the Lord's appearing, I can truly say, 'It is well!'

Revelation 3: Buy From Christ

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!
So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 
You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.
I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. 
Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. - Rev. 3:14-20 NIV

There is so much to be gleaned from Revelation.  It is after all, as John says in the introduction, "The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.".(Rev. 1:1-2 NIV)  Since It is the word of God, the one who is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, there is no dimension of time as we normally consider.  God's word is as relevant today as it was when John found himself on the Isle of Patmos.  The same truths apply to the church today as when this book was written.  As much as I hate to admit it, the primary letter to the churches which applies to the American church today is the letter addressed to the Laodicean church.  ''You are neither not or cold', we are told and we immediately have the taste of lukewarm tea in our mouth.  It's not hot, it's not cold, it's undrinkable. 

We think we're wealthy, we take up huge collections to pay for the huge churches we build.  We magnanimously send our token missionaries to foreign lands. We entertain the lost with our enormous musical productions.  We give some of our resources to the poor and downtrodden as long was we don't have to come in physical contact with them.  'You think you are rich', God says, 'but you don't know how wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked you are.' 

Meanwhile, Christ is still  knocking at the door. ' Buy from me', he says, 'buy gold that has been refined by persecution, by sacrifice, by blood.  Buy the white robe of righteousness.  Buy the balm that will allow you to open your eyes.  Don't be tempted to buy all the trappings of the world, buy from me!' 

Jude: Faultless

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. - Jude 1:24-25 NIV

Do you know how much I need a savior, how much I needed one in my past and need one for my future?  "Prone to wander," as the song says, "Lord I feel it.  Prone to leave the God I love."  I have nothing in my own power arsenal that will keep me safe from the temptation to stray.  Nothing!  Even when I do not wander off in my actions, I cannot keep my heart safe.  The pull is there:  to take the shortcut, to malign, to despair, to seek my own alternatives.  Thank God, there is a Savior with the glory, majesty, power and authority to keep me safe, to keep me from falling.  Someone who dances and rejoices over me with great joy.  Someone who takes me by the hand and proudly presents me to the Father, as faultless as an unblemished newborn child.

1 John 4: Be Loving

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:7-11 NIV

We have the tendency to think the Christmas message is peace, but in Matthew 10:24, Jesus said, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword."  Jesus knew that his life and death would always be controversial, that it would cause hatred between nations, between neighbors, even between families.  We cannot be responsible for how the message is received.  We can only be responsible for our response to those who don't want to receive the message and that response must be one of love.  For Christ's message, an amazing tale, one that many find hard to believe, and the one we should be proclaiming this time of year, is a story of love.  God sent his one and only son into the world so that we might live through him.  Are we really proclaiming and showing his love this season, or are we caught up in the norms of society and forgetting the message to be loving?