An Angel Preaching the Gospel (Rev. 14:6-7)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/29/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  An Angel Preaching the Gospel

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 14:6-7

 

            Message of the verse:  “6 And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; 7 and he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.’”

            It is hard to know for sure how much angels are involved in the process of salvation here on earth at this time, but I would think that angels have a lot to do with it especially in the area of “circumstances.”  At this point in the tribulations period, just before the last judgments are to be sent upon planet earth and it’s inhabitants an angel will fly in the midheaven to give out the eternal message of the Gospel to all those who are on the earth.  The midheaven is where the sun is at noon, or the highest point in heaven.  Verse seven gives part of his message and it is about not fearing, not fearing Satan, the Antichrist, or other circumstances that are going on at this time because the time of God’s judgment is about to unfold on planet earth and one may not be able to save his body, but if one accepts the message of the Gospel their soul will be delivered to be with Jesus Christ forever.  The angel appeals to the people to worship the God of creation, the One who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and the springs of water.  To understand that God did in fact create the heavens and the earth is a step closer to realizing what one needs to know concerning how to be saved.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Again I want to think about the role that angels have in the spreading of the Gospel and the possibility of how it was done in my life and thus praising the Lord for their activity.  I know that at this time the Lord has given the job of preaching the Gospel to His Church, but again I do think it is possible that angels are involved in some ways, and I can think back to a time in the summer of 1970 or 1971 when I was not saved yet and was ridding my motorcycle with a friend of mine and a car had to drive off of the road to miss hitting me because I was not watching what I was doing and if that car would have hit me it is hard to realize what would have happened, and I think that this could be a time when an angel was involved in saving my life.

 

The Word of God has been convicting to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord with all of the trials and decisions that are going on in my life today.

 

Memory verses for the week:  1Corthians 13:1-3

 

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.  If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it prophets me nothing.

The Character of the 144,000 (Rev. 14:4-5)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/26/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  Character of the 144,000

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 14:4-5

 

            Message of the verse:  “4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb.  5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.” 

            These two verses show the character of these 144,000 and they have impeccable character as can be seen.  A couple of things here that need to be explained and the first one has to do with the phrase “did not defile themselves with women.”  This does not necessarily mean that they were not married, although if one considers the time that they live in it would be much easier for them if they were not married.  A look at Paul’s word in his letter to the Corinthians speaks of his advice on this subject of marriage when times are rough.  The second thing has to do with firstfruits, which in the OT was a festival that the Jewish people were involved in where they would bring the first fruits of a crop to the priest and offer it to the Lord.  The Lord Jesus Christ is the firstfruits in that He is the first one to receive His glorious body.  If these people have all died in the Tribulation period and are in heaven then it could be that they are God’s firstfruits of that period.  If this celebration is conducted on the earth then they could be the firstfruits that go into the 1000 year Kingdom.  It seems to me that both of these could have some problems.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I do know that the thing that I can take out of these verses is from the character of these people and follow that, character of not lying and keeping myself clean within my marriage, and to follow the Lamb of God in all that He would want me to do.

 

The Word of God has challenged my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To follow the Lord Jesus Christ and His example while He was on this earth.  To trust and obey Him in all that I do.

 

  

Heaven Sings for the 144,000 (Rev. 14:2-3)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/25/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Heaven sings for the 144,000

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 14:2-3

 

            Message of the verse:  “2  And I heard a sound from heaven like the roaring of a great waterfall or the rolling of mighty thunder. It was like the sound of many harpists playing together.  3  This great choir sang a wonderful new song in front of the throne of God and before the four living beings and the twenty-four elders. And no one could learn this song except those 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.”           

            It seems to me that there are more similes in the book of Revelations than any other book in the all of Scriptures, for John is describing things that he has never seen before and so he describes them by using things that he has seen, and it is no difference in verse two when he describes the music that is going on in heaven.  God was the One who has made music and I for one am so very thankful that He did.  This is how the Bible in Basic English describes this event:  “And a voice from heaven came to my ears, like the sound of great waters, and the sound of loud thunder: and the voice which came to me was like the sound of players, playing on instruments of music.”  This music seems to be for the benefit of these 144,000 Jewish Evangelists who have worked so tirelessly on earth to get the message of salvation out in such difficult circumstances.  The music was played in front of the throne of God and the four living beings were in the audience along with the twenty-four elders.  This will be a wonderful celebration.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The circumstances that are around these verses remind me of something that the Apostle Paul wrote to, I believe it was the Corinthians when he was writing about light momentary afflictions.  2Cor. 4:17 and 18 are the verses that seem to fit for me as I think about this seen in heaven:  “17  For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,  18  while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”  As a believer I cannot see these things that John is writing about in these two verses of Revelations 14, but I can see them with my minds eye and better than that I know that they are true and I can relate to them by not getting so worked up over some of these things that are going on in my life at this time. 

 

The Word of God has been refreshment to my soul as I read it and studied it this morning, and it has also challenged my heart very much.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  By God’s grace and mercy I will not let the temporal things of this earth get me down so much for I know that one day I will all of the things on this earth will pass away, as Peter described in 2Peter 3:10, and he was writing to those who were going through hard times. 

Another View of the 144,000 (Rev. 14:1)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/24/2005

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Another view of the 144,000

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 14:1

 

            Message of the verse:  “1. Then I saw the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him were 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.”  (NLT)

            There are two Mount Zion’s mentioned in the Bible, one is in Jerusalem and the other is in heaven, so the question is which one is John writing about in this passage?  I would have to say that this scene takes place in heaven and that these are the same 144,000 that were first mentioned in chapter seven.  It is possible that this is taking place after the tribulation is over and John writes about it in this chapter, or it could be that all of these 144,000 have been martyred and this is taking place in the middle of the tribulation period.  At any rate these first five verses of this chapter speak of what the accomplishments of these 144,000 were and it is a tremendous testimony to the Lord. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  This verse in the way that it is presented for these 144,000 believers could never happen to me since I am not born into the Jewish race, however the principles that are here can apply to me if I do the job that the Lord has planned for me to do before the foundations of the world.

 

The Word of God has challenged my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord to show me the work that I am to do for Him each and every day.

Worship the Beast of Die (Rev. 13:14-18)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/23/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Worship the beast of Die

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations 13:14-18

 

            Message of the verse:  “14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived.  15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. 

            These verses reminds me of the story of the golden image in the book of Daniel, when Nebuchandnezzar had a golden statue made to look like him and anyone who would not bow to the image would be put to death.  However Daniel’s three friends would not bow to the image and were thrown into a fiery furnace and did not die because the Lord was with them in the furnace and saved them from death. 

            In these verses we have the false prophet making an image of the antichrist and causing it to speak and this image gave the message that if anyone would not bow down and worship it then they would die.  This beast was probably set up in Babylon and it will probably be seen on some kind of world wide TV system so all can see it, however because not everyone will be there, there must be a plan put in place to have those around the world to be put to death for not worshiping this image of the beast and that plan can be seen in verses 16-18:  “16  He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 17  so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. 18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man’s number. His number is 666.”  This plan is to give everyone a mark either on their forehead or on the back of their right hand to show their alliance or their worship of the antichrist.  It is possible that this mark will not only have this mark of the beast on it, (see verse 18), but that it will also have some kind of a very small computer chip in it to give the identity of the person who has it on. It is also possible that this chip will have much more information in it such as the bank account number and how much money the person has because verse 17 tell me that this mark will be used to buy and sell things and if one does not have it they will not be able to buy or sell anything.  These verses tell me that there is coming a time when an evil person will have control of all of the “earth dwellers” on this earth, and those who are not earth dwellers will have a hard time surviving here.  It also tells me that this will be a time when people will worship this unholy trinity made of Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet and those who do not will be on a most wanted list and will give up their lives for the cause of Christ.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  First I am not sure that anyone will understand who this antichrist is or second, what this number 666 means before the rapture of the Church. This being said it seems to me that it could be a waste of time trying to figure this out, and as Pastor Burns once said that we as believers should be looking for the return of Christ and not the antichrist.  I think that one of the things that I can take away from these verses is that if I don not keep in the Word of God each day reading it, and studying it that it is possible that I can get into some wrong situations, not as bad as the ones described in these verses, but things that can take me off of the focus to become more like my Savior and Lord.

 

The Word of God has been a very big challenge to my heart as I have studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to read and study God’s Word each day and to ask God to led me in the steps that He wants me to follow each and everyday, trusting Him to be in complete control of my life.  

We continue to look at the False Prophet (Rev. 13:12-13)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/20/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  Continued look at 2^nd beast

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 13:12-13

 

            Message of the verse:  “12  He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed.  13  He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men.”

            This second beast, the false prophet, will have the authority of the first beast, the antichrist.  He is going to be like a puppet to the first beast.  One of his jobs will be to cause the “earth dwellers” to worship the first beast and one of the ways to get their attention will be to perform signs so that these earth dwellers will believe that these two beasts have actually come from God or in fact are god.  As stated before these two are a part of the unholy trinity, with the Devil making up the third part, and that the false prophet was going to imitate the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit does His work to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and in a sense this is what this false prophet is doing for antichrist.  Satan is not original, but has always wanted to be like God Himself. 

            When Jesus was upon the earth the Pharisees would ask Him on more that one occasion to perform a sign to prove who He was and He would not do it.  This false prophet will perform signs to show the world who the antichrist and he are and the world will follow them all the way into hell.  2 Thessolonians 2:9-12 gives more insight into the signs the false prophet will perform:  “9  This evil man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles.  10  He will use every kind of wicked deception to fool those who are on their way to destruction because they refuse to believe the truth that would save them.  11  So God will send great deception upon them, and they will believe all these lies.  12  Then they will be condemned for not believing the truth and for enjoying the evil they do.”

           

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am again thinking about the term “earth dwellers” knowing that those who choose to not accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord will love this earth as their only home and miss out on the opportunity to live with the Lord Jesus Christ forever.  I must be aware of the pull of the attractions that this world has to offer and flee from them. 1John 2:15 sums this up:  “Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love the world, you show that you do not have the love of the Father in you.”

 

The Word of God was both convicting and challenging to my heart today.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord in the trials that we are going through even though things are not happening the way that I would like for them to be happening.

 

 

The False Prophet (Rev. 13:11)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/19/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  The False Prophet

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 13:11

 

            Message of the verse:  “11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon.”

            It is interesting that there have been people in our day that think that they have an idea as to who the Antichrist is but I have never heard anyone try and identify the false prophet that will come up after the antichrist.  John has written in his letters about antichrist, but he also has said that there are many antichrists in the world.  Jesus said that there would be many false prophets that will come into the world to deceive the people and there is much written about some of the ones who did indeed come in the first century.  James, John, Peter and Jude all wrote about false prophets in their letters that are recorded in the NT. 

            Verse eleven speaks of the false prophet who will come up out of the earth and will be the antichrist’s “sidekick” so to speak.  He is said to have two horns, which means that he has power, but he does not have a crown, which means it is not political power.  The word “another” means another of the same kind in the Greek language, and so this beast will have some of the ungodly qualities that the first beast has.

            This beast will complete Satan’s unholy trinity, as Satan has always tried to imitate God, and the Antichrist will represent Jesus Christ, and the False Prophet will represent the Holy Spirit.  This unholy trinity will only last a short time.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  False prophets have power today to spread their poison to many people who have been blinded to the Truth, but God can use people like me to gently share the Truth with some of these people who have never heard the real story of the Gospel of Salvation.

 

The Word of God has challenged my heart to be open and to even go out of my comfort zone to tell others about the grace of God.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord to lead me and to guide me into the places that He would want me to go, and to trust that He is in control of any jobs that I am to go on, and that He is in control of the situation in Canada.  It is very hard at times and if it were not for the promises that are in His Word I am sure that I would not be able to handle all of this.

Trust in the Lord no Matter What (Rev. 13:10)

SPIRITUAL DIARY For 08/18/2005

 

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  Trust in the Lord no matter what

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 13:10

 

            Message of the verse:  “10 If anyone is destined for captivity, to captivity he goes; if anyone kills with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. Here is the perseverance and the faith of the saints.”  (NAS 95)  “10 The people who are destined for prison will be arrested and taken away. Those who are destined for death will be killed. But do not be dismayed, for here is your opportunity to have endurance and faith.”  (NLT)

            John has  be talking about the people whose names are written in the Lambs book of life, (V-8)  and so verse 10 continues to speak of these believers.  Some of them will end up in prison and some of them will be martyred for the cause of Christ as people throughout the history of the world have done before them and some of them will live out their lives and see the end of the tribulation period and see the 2^nd coming of Jesus Christ.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I believe that God has placed everyone in the exact place in history that He wants them to be and for the purpose He has for the at that period of time and in this verse 10 God has called some of these saints to go to prison for His sake and even some to be killed for His sake and some of them to live out their lives in this very hard time period for His cause.  In this same way God has called me to live in the time period of history that I am living in and has given me work to do for the cause of Jesus Christ while I am here, and has also given me trials to go through in order to make me more like His Son, Jesus Christ.  Faith and trust are key elements in the life of a believer as they are being developed through the power of the Holy Spirit in my life as I got through the trials that God has sent me into and I want to continue to trust Him in all of these trials.

 

The Word of God has been very challenging to my heart as I read and studied it this morning. 

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to have faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as He is with me throughout these trials He has chosen to send me through, along with my wife too.

 

 

Earth Dwellers (Rev. 13:7-9)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/17/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Earth Dwellers

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 13:7-9

 

            Message of the verse:  “7 It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.  8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.  9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear.”

            Antichrist will have the power to make war with the saints who are on the earth when he comes into power and he will kill some of them, but even in death they will have victory.  There is a difference between the people of God and the people who are “earth dwellers,” and that difference shows up in their worship.  Verse eight shows this difference for it says that those who dwell on the earth will worship this beast, those whose names are not written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.  This verse gives a powerful wittiness to the sovereignty of God, that God has chosen those for salvation and that the Son has died for this salvation and the Spirit has called those to this salvation.

            Verse nine gives the statement that if anyone is truly has those spiritual ears to listen to this he should do so.  This statement was also at the end of each letter that Christ wrote to the seven churches; however it also included “what the Spirit says to the churches” in it.  I think because the Church is in heaven at this time there was no need in adding the last part of this statement here.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The Bible makes it clear that there is a difference between those who believe that God has provided salvation for them totally and those who do not believe this.  There is no gray area when it comes to a person’s salvation, they are either saved or they are lost.  There may be some who are saved who lived like they are lost, and Lot comes to mind here, but believers are to live like they have had their sins forgiven by the grace of God and this is what I want to do.  I am not of this world just as Jesus said that He was not of this world.  I do not want the world system to pressure me into it’s mold as Paul spoke of in Romans 12:1-2, but I want to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ as spoken of in Romans 8:29, and by God’s grace this will be true in my life.

 

The Word of God has challenged my heart as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I do not want the world to squeeze me into it’s mold, but I want to continue to grow in grace and in the knowledge of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ so that I may be conformed to His image. 

Antichrist's Speech (Rev. 13:5-6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/16/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Antichrist’s speech

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                             Reference:  Revelations 13: 5-6

 

            Message of the verse:  “5 There was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him.

6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven.”  (NAS-95)  “5 The Beast had a loud mouth, boastful and blasphemous. It could do anything it wanted for forty-two months.

6 It yelled blasphemies against God, blasphemed his Name, blasphemed his Church, especially those already dwelling with God in Heaven.”  (Message)

            Again it is good to be reminded that all of these things will happen in the second half of the tribulation, or the “Great Tribulation,” and also after Satan is expelled from heaven.  I would like to go back to a statement that Dr. Wiersbe made concerning the possibility of Satan being in heaven when the “Judgment Seat of Christ” was going on, as he would be accusing the brethren at that event.  If you couple that with a phrase in verse six, “Blaspheme…those who dwell in heaven,” this all begins to make more sense, for if Satan was at the Judgment Seat of Christ accusing the brethren and was then kicked out of heaven after that event then it would make sense that he would be blaspheming those who were at that event because his accusations did no good. 

            Verse five conveys that the antichrist is going to be a very arrogant person who will rule the earth for 3 and ½ years and will pretty much have his way while doing this as he will be able to kill anyone who gets in his way and there will probably be some from Israel and also Tribulation Saints who will give him some trouble, however he will not be able to kill all of them, as God will protect these believers.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Even though antichrist will be ruling this world when he comes to power, God will have him on a short leash so that he will not be able to do anything without it going through the sovereign fingers of God.  This is also true today and I can take great comfort in knowing this.

 

The Word of God a challenge to my heart as I read and studied it this evening.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Even though the news from Canada was not so good, I still trust the Lord will get us through this trial in a way that will be pleasing to us and also glorify the Lord.

A Fierce Beast (Rev. 13:2)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/14/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  A fierce Beast

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 13:2

 

            Message of the verse:  “2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.”

            This verse gives a description of this beast and also who it was that gave him so much power.  Some of this description is similar to what Daniel has given of this beast from his writings.  John says that he is like a leopard, and a leopard has great speed and quickness so this could refer to antichrist’s ability to get things done in a hurry.  His feet are like a bear’s feet, and a bear has great strength, so this could show the strength of antichrist and his government.  His mouth is like the mouth of a lion, and a lion does a lot of growling with his mouth in order to frighten whatever is around him, and this could be the same thing that antichrist will do.  The verse goes on to say that it is the dragon or Satan that gives antichrist all of his power and authority.  This future antichrist will be possessed by Satan himself and so it will be like having Satan in a human body walking around the earth, for Satan will not be allowed in heaven from the mid-point of the tribulation on. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Satan is only a counterfeiter, in that he tries to do the things that only God can do and so as I live my life here on planet earth involved in the spiritual battle that is going on unseen around me I must be sure to put on my spiritual armor each and every day for Satan is always trying to trick those who are followers of Jesus Christ.

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord with all of the things going on in my life, and trust Him to get me to church this morning without any stomach troubles. 

Antichrist the Beast (Rev. 13:1)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/13/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Antichrist the beast

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Revelations 13:1

 

            Message of the verse:  “1. And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name.”  (NIV)

            In the AV account the word “I” is used in place of the word “dragon” and is some of the other translations the word “he” is used.  It seems that most translators believe that it was Satan who was standing on the shore of the sea.  The “sea” in many parts of the Scriptures means the nations or the Gentile nations as in a sea of humanity.  The next part of this verse speaks of a beast coming up out of the sea so this would mean that this beast is coming up out of the Gentile nations, and because he is described as a beast he cannot be a nice person, for this is the description of Antichrist.  This beast is described to have ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns.  Horns usually represent power, political power, when used in the Bible and this person will have very much power.  These ten horns represent ten nations, and most feel this is speaking of a re-built Roman Empire.  I believe that the seven heads represent seven nations, for when antichrist comes into power three of the nations will not want him as their leader but he will force them to come under his power.  There are ten crowns on his horns that represent the ten rulers. As this vision of the beast, (antichrist) continues in the later verses of this chapter it will become clearer.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  God has allowed His readers to have a glimpse of what will happen in the future through the writings of John in this wonderful book of Revelations and it is important that I do not get so caught up in what the possible meaning of this book is, even though that is important to know, and to focus on what God would have me to do each day of my life.  Prophecy is a very important part of God’s Word, but it is important to see the whole picture and not just get caught up in what the prophecy is all about.  Jesus Christ and the salvation He has provided is the central theme of the Bible and I must keep my focus on that, and prophecy is a part of that.

 

The Word of God has challenged my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord, knowing that He is the One who is in control, trust Him to do the things that James wrote about in the first chapter of His letter:  2  Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3  knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  4  And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.  (James 1:2-4)

 

God Is In Control (Rev. 12:15-16)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/12/2005

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  God is in control

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 12: 15-17

 

            Message of the verse:  “15  And the serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the flood.

16  And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth. 17  And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.”

            There are times in this wonderful book that it is difficult to understand for sure whether John is giving the picture of using descriptive language that is just symbolism and that is the case here, at least, for me.  The spiritual truth that I gain from this section is that God takes care of His own people no matter how much Satan tries to destroy them, and if one looks at history one can see that the Jews have been targeted by Satan ever since they were a small family living only in the Middle East. 

            I will give only one explanation as to what the flood and the earth opening it’s mouth to swallow up this flood might mean.  John could well be speaking of a flood of people, or an army that antichrist will send after these Jews, and it could be that there will be an earthquake that will happen to swallow up this army that is sent to pursue Israel.  If one looks at different Scriptures from the OT there are word pictures that describe similar things.  Isaiah 59:19  “So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.”  (AV)  Numbers 16:31 “ Then it came about as he finished speaking all these words, that the ground that was under them split open; 32  and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men who belonged to Korah, with their possessions.” (NASB)  Numbers 16 speaks of the rebellion of Korah and the results of their rebellion are seen in these two verses.

            Satan became very angry when the Lord protected Israel, so he went off to cause much trouble with the rest of the offspring of Israel.  It is possible that there will be many in Israel who did not choose to go to this place where God will care for those who have gone there and so these are the ones who Satan will try and destroy.  It is also possible that Satan will be going after the “Tribulation Saints” too, and tries to destroy them.  At any rate Satan realizing how little time he has and will try and destroy as many as he can, however if we look at Rev. 6: 11 “And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.”  Only so many will die for the cause of Christ during the Tribulation Period, and according to this verse God has that number already taken care of.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  These verses teach me that I, like all other believers, has an enemy that would kill me right now if I did not have the God of heaven protecting me.  I do believe that if I obey God, and do the things that He has prepared for me to do way back in eternity past, (see Ephesians 2:10), and not get caught up in some terrible consistent sin, that God will keep me here on this earth until my task in finished.  My hope has always been ever since I first came to know the Lord was that I would be one of the ones who will go in the rapture alive, as Paul described it in 1Cor. 15 and also 1Thes. 4.

The Word of God has brought refreshment to my heart as I read it this morning, and it has also challenged me too.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Live my life like I realize the truth that God is in control.

Memory verse for the week:  1Thes. 4:3-8

 

For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor; not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you.  For God has not called you for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.  So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.

 

On the Wings of Eagles (Rev. 12:13-14)

SPIRITIUAL DIARY FOR 08/11/2005

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  On the wings of Eagles

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Revelations12:13-14 

 

            Message of the verse:  “  13  And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child.  14  And the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, in order that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent.”

            As seen in the last few verses of this chapter Satan has been thrown out of heaven and is now taking out his anger on the nation of Israel and this is exactly what verse thirteen is saying, for the woman who gave birth to the male child is the nation of Israel. 

            All of these events take place at the beginning of the last half of the tribulation period, which is when antichrist goes into the re-built temple in Jerusalem and desecrates it as was told about in the book of Daniel and also in the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus was speaking about this in His Olivet Discourse in chapters 24 & 25.  Jesus forewarned the Nation of Israel that when they saw this event happening, that is the desecration of the temple, that they should flee the city and not come back for there would be much trouble going on there for them after this event.  Verse 14 tells that the escape for the remnant of Israel will be on eagles’ wings and that “she” will be taken to a certain place where she will be nourished for three and a half years, or until the end of the tribulation period.  How do we understand what these eagles’ wings are all about?  As I have said before the rest of the Scriptures are the best commentary for the book of Revelations and it can be noted in a number of places that this description was also given to the nation of Israel when God brought them out of Egypt.  Exodus. 19:4 has this to say about it:  “‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself.’”  How God does this is not as important as the fact that He will accomplish it just as He has said He will.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Dr. Wiersbe said in his book on Revelations about this section that “God cares for those whom He wants to use to accomplish His purposes on earth.”  As a part of the body of Christ, the Church I believe that God will take care of me here on earth until my job is done and then He will take me to heaven to ever be with my Savior and Lord.

 

The Word of God has been a challenge to my heart and refreshment to my soul as I read it and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  As I look back on the past thirty-two years of living with my wife I can see the faithfulness of God and am thankful for these wonderful memories that have been made.  I can also be thankful that God, according to His Word which cannot be wrong, that God will continue to take care of us and use us for His glory until it is time for us to go home and be with Him forever and ever.  God is faithful and God is in control.

Memory verses for the week:  1Thes. 4:3-8

 

For this is the will of God, your sanctification, that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor; not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you.  For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.

 

The Saints Overcoming Satan (Rev. 12:11-12)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08-10-2005

 

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  The saints overcoming Satan

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 12:11-12

 

            Message of the verse:  “11  ‘And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even to death.  12   For this reason, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time.’”

            This verse and the next continue what is said by the voice that John hears from heaven.  Verse 11 describes how the believers who are on the earth defeat Satan, and they do it because of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. In John’s first letter he also deals with a person overcoming by the blood of the Lamb.  These believers also overcome by their testimony, and also because they did not love their lives so much that they were not willing to lie it down for the cause of Christ.  Jesus Christ laid down His life for everyone in the world, and those who have accepted His forgiveness realize this and thus are willing to do the same.

            Verse twelve tells a story of two places and in one there is rejoicing and in the other there is big trouble about to begin.  Rejoicing because Satan was thrown out of heaven and trouble because he goes to earth knowing that there is little time for him left. 

            Going through the book of Revelations this time has given me a much clearer knowledge about the timing of things and all of the things described in these verses happens at the mid point of the tribulation, so that will mean that Satan will be on earth for the last three and a half years of the tribulation period and at the end of it will be thrown into the lake of fire for 1000 years by the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I look at these things and think about the song that I heard on the radio this morning, “God is in Control,” and also think of how it seemed so real that God spoke to my heart about this very fact, I can only praise Him for being in control.  As I was listening to the Indians baseball game last night they were down by five runs going into the 9^th inning and it was if the Lord was speaking to my heart that He would show me a sign that he was in control of the investment problems by causing the Indians to will the game and thus I had confidence that they would win and they not only won, but it was the way that they won that convinced me that God was truly causing this to show me that He was indeed in control of these matters.  I said to the Lord that He did not need to do this because I know that He is in control of these matters, but He seemed to say that He would do it anyway.  This is not the first time that this happened to me.  It happened in May of 1981 right before David was going to go in for his open-heart surgery and God seemed to say that He was going to cause the Indians to come back from what was a sure defeat and win the ball game.  I remember that the manager seemed to make a mistake and lost his DH and the Indians picture had to bat and he got a hit, which helped win the ball game for the Tribe.  I told the Lord at that time too that He did not need to give me a sign because I was not asking for one and trusted Him completely that the surgery was completely in His will, but He seemed to say at that time that He would do it anyway and He did.  All I can say that is in all of this I am thankful for these signs, as they do not happen to often in my life, however I do trust the Lord completely that He is in control of all of these events and just like the horrible events that will take place in the tribulation period He is in control of them too.

 

The Word of God has brought refreshment to my heart as I studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I do trust the Lord, as I know that He is in control of all theses seemingly bad things that going on in my life.  I trust Him to work them out for our good and for His glory.

Memory verses for the week:  1Thes. 4:3-8

 

For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor; not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you.  For God did not call us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.  So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.

 

Praise Because Satan is Gone from Heaven (Rev. 12:10)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 08/09/2005

 

My Worship Time                              Focus:  Praises because Satan is gone from heaven

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Revelations 12:10

            Message of the verse:  “10  And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, ‘Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, who accuses them before our God day and night.’”

            This verse makes it a little bit more clearer the things that Dr. Wiersbe has written concerning Satan being there at the Judgment Seat of Christ, because the one who speaks in this verse is said to be in heaven and what is said is praise because the accuser is now gone, and he had been accusing the saints day and night before he was thrown out of heaven.  The first part of the verse is a statement of praise that the kingdom of God and the authority of His Christ have come, and also salvation and power have come.  This seems to be the case for those who are in heaven and the reason is because Satan is gone and will not be allowed in heaven ever again.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  This verse is a part of the hope that lies within me, that is that one day I will be with my Lord Jesus Christ in heaven and that my salvation will be complete and lack nothing, and that I will no longer be affected by sin ever again, and that will be a wonderful day indeed.

 

The Word of God was refreshment to my soul as I studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord for His timing on all of the  issues that are going on in my life today.  I cannot be involved in all of this timing for I would only make a bigger mess of things that they already are.

Memory verses for the week:  1Thes. 4:3-8

 

For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor; not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the manner because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you.  For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.  So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.