Sunday, July 7, 2024

The Revelation (Col. 3:4)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 4/14/2017 9:48 PM

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  “The Revelation”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Colossians 3:4

            Message of the verses:  4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

            Let us begin this last section in the outline we are following from John MacArthur’s commentary but quoting Revelation 19:11-12, 15-16 which tells us about what will happen as described in the highlighted portion of our verse for today:

“11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God…15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."”

            Now we will have to also take a look at verse 14 which says “14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses.”  It goes like this:  At the rapture of the church, the end of the church age which began in Acts chapter two all true members of the church, that is the universal church will meet the Lord in the air, and then we will go to heaven to be with the Lord forever.  The seven year tribulation period will began shortly after the rapture and at the end of the tribulation believers will return with Christ to planet earth where He will end the famous battle of Armageddon, judge the nations and separated the sheep from the goats with the goats (unbelievers going into the pit) and the sheep (believers from the tribulation period) will go into the Millennial kingdom to produce children to be in the Millennial kingdom.  Now then as we look at verse fourteen we see that the armies which are in heaven are the ruptured saints who will return with Christ.

            MacArthur writes “The verdict of eternity will reverse the verdicts of time.  On that day, it will become apparent who really belongs to the Lord.  ‘The Lord knows those who are His’ (2 Tim. 2:19), and He will reveal them to the world.  Lightfoot comments, ‘The veil which now shrouds your higher life from others, and even partly from yourselves, will then be withdrawn.  The world which persecutes, despises, ignores now, will then be blinded with the dazzling glory of the revelation….’ John wrote, ‘We know that , when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is’(1 John 3:2).”

            As we look at the words “Christ who is our life” we must understand that not only does Christ give life, but Christ is our life.  John 14:6 states “Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”  Galatians 2:20 states “"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”  2 Cor. 4:10 states “[Paul says that he was] always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”   As we think of Good Friday we know that Christ died for us and because He paid for our sins as long as we have accepted His forgiveness and are born-again may have to do things like Paul did, that is persecution and therefore our bodies may be marred like Paul’s.  Paul writes “For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain” in Philippians 1:21. 

            MacArthur concludes “The key to living the risen life is to have a life centered on Christ.  The Son, not this present world, is the center of the believer’s universe.”

4/14/2017 10:17 PM

           

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