Tag: revelation

Revelation 2:8-11

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            What is unique about chapters two and three of Revelation is that Jesus himself is the speaker to seven different churches.  Today’s lesson is addressed to the church at Smyrna, a large and beautiful port city in the ancient world.  Jesus was letting the believers in Smyrna know that they were about to experience some severe persecution.  They need not be fearful, but faithful because their Lord knows all about suffering.  The church’s perseverance under such trouble would result in the crown of life, given to them by Jesus himself.  This was surely an encouragement to the believers as they underwent difficulty.
 
            The congregation at Smyrna was facing imprisonment and, for some, even death for their faith.  The heart of the message by Jesus is to remain faithful.  There will always be cowards among the church who will fold when the going gets tough.  But persecution and hardship have a way of purging the soul and the church of its dross.  Suffering is inevitable; how we handle it is completely under our own control.
 
            Few of us will ever likely face a hardship that could result in martyrdom.  So, how much more we really ought to be able to deal with the daily irritations and trials that God puts in our way in order to refine us and shape our faith.  Jesus is not looking for perfect people, just faithful followers willing to endure suffering with the truth that our Lord stands with us. 
 

 

            King Jesus, you have something to say to all of us in the church who follow you.  Enable me with spiritual courage and resolve so that I might endure every hardship with Christian forbearance, mercy, and understanding that eternal life awaits me.  Amen.

Revelation 1:9-20

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Easter Sunday may have come and gone, but the church remains in the season called “Eastertide,” which is the forty days until celebrating Christ’s ascension to heaven.  This means that Easter is not just a one day affair; it is a joyous time of focusing on new life and exulting in our resurrected Lord.  The Apostle John had a vision of the resurrected Jesus in his glory.  Although John was quivering in his sandals, the Lord said to him: “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one.  I died, and behold I am alive forevermore.”
 
            Jesus is alive!  Since Christ is risen, God’s people are united with him in his resurrection.  That means the church is alive.  Yes, the church is a-l-i-v-e, alive!  The term “dead church” gets bantered around quite a bit these days.  But that is really an oxymoron; a genuine Christ redeemed Body of believers cannot possibly be dead; they are alive!  If a church is dead, it is not a church.  It could be a country club, a benevolent organization, and even a moral institution, but a church is not a church if it is dead because Jesus is alive and his body is not dead.
 
            Christians have life in Jesus Christ.  We are alive forevermore because Jesus will never again die.  So, then, we are to live as vigorous and vibrant believers.  What things will you do differently since you know you cannot die?  How will the knowledge of your eternal alive-ness impact you today and every day?  The truth is:  we have been raised with Christ to new life; we cannot die because death no longer has mastery over us.  We can now live by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us.
 

 

            Living Lord, I give you thanks for the gift of life.  Help me to live, really live, in the light of your resurrection so that I can glorify your Name with everything I am.  Amen.

Revelation 3:1-6

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment


            When Christians think of biblical epistles (letters) to churches, the Apostle Paul might immediately come to mind.  But contained within the first three chapters of Revelation are seven compact succinct letters to seven different churches.  What makes these short bursts of exhortation so powerful is that they come from Jesus himself.  Yes, that Jesus – the Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the church.  So, it seems to me that Christ’s observations about the church carry more weight than anybody else’s thoughts.  
             “I know your works; you have a name of being alive, but you are dead.  Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God.”  Ouch!  The Lord pulled no punches in getting to the heart of the church’s life… that is, death.  The stark reality is that this statement from Jesus still remains penetrating and relevant; it could be said of a great many Western churches today.
             So, what is to be done about the situation of spiritual deadness in the church?  “Remember then what you received and heard; obey it, and repent.”  Boom!  There it is.  If the Christian Calendar seems to be a liturgical downer by spending forty days of Lent in a state of repentance, then perhaps the Christian Year is not the problem but a provided avenue of getting square with God.  Maybe the issue is our own shortsightedness, lack of remembrance of Christ’s redemption in all things, and perpetual insistence on personal agendas which do not jive with Christ’s teachings.  In short, we have forgotten Jesus.  
             Awesome Lord Jesus, your words penetrate to the core my being.  Strengthen me by the continuing presence of yourself through the Holy Spirit so that my every thought, word, and deed is done in your Name.  Amen.

Revelation 7:9-17

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            There is a day coming when followers of Jesus will be “before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.”  It will be a glorious time of unending peace, harmony, and rest.
 
            But first, before this permanent Sabbath, there will be trouble, hardship, trial, and even martyrdom.  There must be suffering before glory.  Sometimes the difficult circumstances of life seem to have no end.  Yet, they will eventually pass, and we must continually keep this in mind.  There is a day coming when God’s pastoral presence will forever guard and keep our lives, if we endure to the end.
 
            Perseverance, endurance, and pushing through hard situations are necessary to realizing the finish line.  We cannot just sit here on earth in some sort of holding pattern waiting for the end.  Just as an athlete must go into strict training in order to run the race well, finish strong, and cross the line, so we as Christians are to be in training utilizing an array of spiritual practices that will fortify our souls to keep going and finish the race.  The book of Revelation was a vision of the Apostle John given to believers in hardship needing to persevere.  Giving them a glimpse of the glorious ending was one way of helping them in the present to live for Jesus Christ.
 

 

            Patient God, you tediously work until your plans and purposes are accomplished.  As you are slowly bringing your kingdom to the world, strengthen me so that I do not give up.  Help me to persevere, living and loving like Jesus, to his glory.  Amen.