Aug. 19, 2014 THE TIME IS NEAR
Even though the book of Revelation has some passages that may difficult to understand, there are many passages that are abundantly clear. The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of future events but this glimpse of the future has as its purpose impact on our lives today. Revelation 1:3 sets the stage for Revelation: “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.” We will not be blessed just by reading Revelation but by “heeding” the things we read. In chapter two and three we read what God had to say to the seven churches. The first church God addresses is the church in Ephesus and He had some good things to say about the church, but He also had a warning for the church. Revelation 2:4-5: “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lampstand out of its place-unless you repent.” In several previous blogs I have talked about the importance of deeds and how that a misunderstanding of grace may cause us to neglect the call to be about good deeds. It’s interesting to see how in the great book of Revelation dealing with future events, we find a warning not to neglect being about good deeds. Remember, it’s not about good deeds for the sake of good deeds, but about us reflecting the goodness of God out of the new heart that we have been given. Deeds are important because good deeds are an expression of love. Love motivates us to be engaged in good deeds. As said above, if we heed the admonitions in scripture, we will be blessed by our Father. Revelation 2:7: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” There are a number of verses in Revelation that promise blessings to “he who overcomes.” I think that the “overcoming” He is talking about is us overcoming anything and everything that distracts or hinders us from walking in His ways-according to the new creation that He made us. In other words, living in all that Jesus accomplished on the cross is being an overcomer. Satan’s goal is to keep us from living according to God’s design; so ultimately, we must overcome Satan and his schemes. Our Father always makes provision for us. If we find that we are not about the good deeds that God has for us, God gives us the opportunity to repent and get back on track with Him. Let us remember that He is coming soon-the time is near. God is not limited by time, so 2000 years since Jesus birth is not a long time – the point is that today is the day to overcome.
Revelation 2:26: “And he who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations;”
Revelation 2:29: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Blessings,
Buddy
Even though the book of Revelation has some passages that may difficult to understand, there are many passages that are abundantly clear. The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of future events but this glimpse of the future has as its purpose impact on our lives today. Revelation 1:3 sets the stage for Revelation: “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.” We will not be blessed just by reading Revelation but by “heeding” the things we read. In chapter two and three we read what God had to say to the seven churches. The first church God addresses is the church in Ephesus and He had some good things to say about the church, but He also had a warning for the church. Revelation 2:4-5: “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lampstand out of its place-unless you repent.” In several previous blogs I have talked about the importance of deeds and how that a misunderstanding of grace may cause us to neglect the call to be about good deeds. It’s interesting to see how in the great book of Revelation dealing with future events, we find a warning not to neglect being about good deeds. Remember, it’s not about good deeds for the sake of good deeds, but about us reflecting the goodness of God out of the new heart that we have been given. Deeds are important because good deeds are an expression of love. Love motivates us to be engaged in good deeds. As said above, if we heed the admonitions in scripture, we will be blessed by our Father. Revelation 2:7: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” There are a number of verses in Revelation that promise blessings to “he who overcomes.” I think that the “overcoming” He is talking about is us overcoming anything and everything that distracts or hinders us from walking in His ways-according to the new creation that He made us. In other words, living in all that Jesus accomplished on the cross is being an overcomer. Satan’s goal is to keep us from living according to God’s design; so ultimately, we must overcome Satan and his schemes. Our Father always makes provision for us. If we find that we are not about the good deeds that God has for us, God gives us the opportunity to repent and get back on track with Him. Let us remember that He is coming soon-the time is near. God is not limited by time, so 2000 years since Jesus birth is not a long time – the point is that today is the day to overcome.
Revelation 2:26: “And he who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations;”
Revelation 2:29: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Blessings,
Buddy
RSS Feed