Discovering Our Awesome God
Dear friends,
In my daily Bible reading I’ve started into the book of Revelation which reminds me again of what an awesome God we serve. What a wonderful privilege John had with the revelation & insights God gave him.
Rev 1:10 On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,
Rev 1:11 which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” Rev 1:12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands,
Rev 1:13 and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. Rev 1:14 The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. Rev 1:15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. Rev 1:16 In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. Rev 1:17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last.
Rev 1:18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
What an amazing experience to have !
Revelation reminds us there is more to life than what our sense knowledge tells us ; it is a book of insight and prophecy which deals with future events; it’s a book of worship. It is a book that that presents breathtaking insights into the heavenly realm and it needs to be handled with great care since there are many layers of meaning to be found in the powerful imagery it presents. Bible commentator Craig Keener writes…
“What then is Revelation’s message? We mention several points below, though we develop most of them later in the commentary on specific passages.
• That God is awesomely majestic, as well as sovereign in our troubles
• That Jesus’ sacrifice as the Lamb ultimately brings complete deliverance for those who trust him
• That God’s judgments on the world are often to serve notice on the world that God will avenge his people
• That regardless of how things appear in the short run, “sin does not go unpunished,” and God will judge
• That God can accomplish his purposes through a small and persecuted remnant; he is not dependent on what the world values as power
• That worship leads us from grief over our sufferings to God’s eternal purposes seen from a heavenly perspective
• That proclaiming Christ invites persecution, the normal state of committed believers in this age
• That Christ is worth dying for
• That a radical contrast exists between God’s kingdom (exemplified in the bride, the new Jerusalem) and the world’s values (exemplified in the prostitute, Babylon)
• That the hope God has prepared for us far exceeds our present sufferings
• That God’s plan and church ultimately include representatives of all peoples
Revelation also proclaims Christ’s Lordship more explicitly and frequently than some parts of the New Testament; under normal circumstances we confront opposition not by softening our witness for Christ but by testifying more boldly. Certainly Revelation, while distinguishing the Father from the Lamb, attributes to Jesus full deity.”
May I commend to you the habit of a daily Bible reading and systematically working through God’s wonderful word. Truly there is life and encouragement to be found in it.
God Bless you as you read his word this week, Lew McMaster