Burunche’s Blog

“Revelation 16:13 – 21 “And I saw three unclean spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. These are demonic spirits that perform signs and go out to all the kings of the earth, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God, the Almighty. “Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who remains awake and clothed, so that he will not go naked and let his shame be exposed.” And they assembled the kings in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon. Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came from the throne in the temple, saying, “It is done!”

And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and peals of thunder, and a great earthquake the likes of which had not occurred since men were upon the earth—so mighty was the great quake. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. And God remembered Babylon the great and gave her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath. Then every island fled, and no mountain could be found. And huge hailstones, about a hundred pounds each,a rained down on them from above. And men cursed God for the plague of hail, because it was so horrendous.”

The dragon, the beast, and the false prophet each have a demonic spirit coming forth from them that resembles a frog. Barclay comments:

(i) Frogs are connected with plagues. One of the plagues in Egypt was a plague of frogs.

(ii) Frogs are unclean animals. Although not mentioned by name, they are included by definition in the list of unclean things in the water and the sea which begins in Leviticus 11:10. The frog stands for an unclean influence.

(iii) Frogs are famous for their empty and continuous croaking-The sound the frog makes is the symbol of meaningless speech.

(iv) In Zoroastrianism, the Persian religion, frogs are the bringer of plagues and the agent of Ahriman, the power of darkness, in his struggle against Ormuzd, the power of light. God might have reminded John of this story.

So, then, to say that frogs came out of the mouth of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet is to say that their words were like plagues, were unclean, were empty futilities, and were the allies of the power of the dark.

The kings of the earth are being summoned to a final showdown! Where is this battle to take place? Many feel that the final battle will be fought on the Plain of Esdraelon before the ruined city of Megiddo. The location is not as important as the fact that absolute good and absolute evil are to fight one last battle and evil will be defeated.

The seventh bowl is poured on onto the air and the weather goes crazy! Thunder and lightning and earthquakes rock the earth! Rome, here represented by the term “Babylon,” is split into three parts. These earthquakes sink the mountains and level the islands. In the last catastrophe, huge hailstones weighing roughly 100 pounds pummel the earth, reducing it to rubble. Do any of these natural disasters cause men to repent? No! Once more, men respond by cursing God.

Years ago, Francis Schaeffer wrote a book entitled, How Shall We Then Live? That question remains valid today. God warned mankind in Isaiah 55:6-7 “Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. Let the wicked man forsake his own way and the unrighteous man his own thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely pardon.”

Now is the time to seek the Lord! Now is the time to call on Him. God wants fellowship with us; this is why He sent Jesus to be born as a man and to live as a sinless man and to die for the sins of all mankind. But we must recognize that we are sinners and accept what Jesus has done for us. God has given us a marvelous earth and friends and family, but His greatest Gift of all is Jesus.

PRAYER: Lord, Jesus, we confess that we are sinners. By ourselves, we cannot earn our way into heaven. Thank you for loving us and for dying for our sins. Please forgive our sins and help us to follow you for the rest of our lives. Thank you that if we do follow you, you have promised us eternal life. In your mighty and precious Name, Jesus. Amen.

Luke 2:1 – 20 “Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that a census should be taken of the whole empire. This was the first census to take place while Quirinius was governor of Syria. And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the City of David called Bethlehem, since he was from the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to him in marriage and was expecting a child.

While they were there, the time came for her Child to be born. And she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were shepherds residing in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks by night. Just then, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today in the City of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord! And this will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there appeared with the angel a great multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests!”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the Baby, who was lying in the manger. After they had seen the Child, they spread the message they had received about Him. And all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, which was just as the angel had told them.”

It was quiet that night. Well, it was quiet in that cave outside Bethlehem. The cave was one of the places where the lambs were kept wrapped in swaddling cloths, the lambs that would later be used for sacrifices. Bethlehem itself was a mad house! Who knew there were so many people who claimed to be descended from King David? And who knew there were so few inns in Bethlehem?

But out in that cave, there was only a small olive oil lamp to light Mary as she gave birth to her Son Jesus. Joseph had never wanted to act as a midwife, but he had no choice. And really, Joseph did pretty well, apart from the time when he thought he would faint. Mary offered the baby her breast and after he had sucked a little he was content. And then these shepherds came blundering in with wild stories of an angelic host that had appeared to them in the sky. Mary looked and Joseph and Joseph looked at Mary; they knew about angelic visitors. And so Joseph brought the lamp closer and the shepherds admired the newborn baby. And then the shepherds thanked Joseph and Mary and went back to their sheep. But for the rest of their lives, those shepherds would hear that song the angels sang, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests!”

PRAYER: Father God, thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You sent Jesus to live as a man, to die for our sins, and to conquer death and the grave so that one day we might be with you in heaven. Lord, help us to always keep that sense of wonder in our hearts. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Revelation 16:1-7 “Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out on the earth the seven bowls of God’s wrath.” So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and loathsome, malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. And the second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it turned to blood like that of the dead, and every living thing in the sea died. And the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water, and they turned to blood. And I heard the angel of the waters say: “Righteous are You, O Holy One, who is and who was, because You have brought these judgments. For they have spilled the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink as they deserve.” And I heard the altar reply: “Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are Your judgments.”

The final plagues have come and they are truly horrible, almost beyond description. Some of these plagues seem very similar to those that afflicted the ancient Egyptians.

1. Malignant sores break out on all those worshiping the beast. As far back as Deuteronomy 28, God warns the Israelites that if they forsake worshiping Him to go after other gods, terrible things will happen. “If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name—the LORD your God— He will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary disasters, severe and lasting plagues, and terrible and chronic sicknesses. He will afflict you again with all the diseases you dreaded in Egypt, and they will cling to you. The LORD will also bring upon you every sickness and plague not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed. You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky will be left few in number, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God.” Deuteronomy 28:58-62

2. The sea turns to blood and everything in it dies. Many times, there have been recorded instances of huge “red tides” of algae that have decimated the oceans wherever they have appeared. Why not a world – wide catastrophe?

3. All fresh water sources turn to blood as well, forcing those left upon the earth to literally drink blood in punishment for the martyrdom of the saints and prophets.

How can an altar speak? Remember that every part of heaven has angels assigned. The voice coming from the altar is the angel of the altar bearing witness to the greatness of God.

8 – 12 “Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given power to scorch the people with fire. And the people were scorched by intense heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues; yet they did not repent and give Him glory. And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness, and men began to gnaw their tongues in anguish and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores; yet they did not repent of their deeds. And the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings of the East.

4. Next the ozone layer that has protected the earth is ripped away, leaving people at the mercy of the sun’s rays. All the time that those who remain on the earth are suffering, not once do they praise God but they rather curse Him!

5. The fifth angel pours his bowl directly on the throne of the beast, plunging its kingdom into darkness. Could this be dust storms and air pollution stirred up as a result of the destruction of the ozone layer and unopposed sunlight?

6. The Euphrates River dries up completely! In the past, armies have diverted the Euphrates, most notably to conquer ancient Babylon. But now with the scorching heat of the sun beating down on the earth, the Euphrates goes completely dry, leaving the countries on the west side of it exposed.

The amazing thing is that as each of these plagues further devastate the earth, those who worship the beast refuse to worship God but curse Him instead. There is no point in cursing someone if you refuse to believe that they exist, so obviously those worshiping the beast believe in God. But these poor people are so deceived that nothing matters to them anymore apart from their suffering and they persist in worshiping the beast.

In the last book of the Narnia Chronicles, C.S. Lewis describes a group of dwarves who refuse to believe in Aslan, the Christ figure, but who persist in chanting that “the dwarves are for the dwarves!” While those around the dwarves are entering into heaven, the dwarves cannot because they refuse to believe.

“Why are we studying such a gloomy book at Christmas?” you might ask. “Revelation is about as grim a book as the Bible possesses. Perhaps our problem is that we have sentimentalized Christmas to the point of the absurd. Jesus did NOT come as a baby so that He could adorn sweet greeting cards 2000 years later. Nor did Jesus confront Satan, death, hell and the grave so that He could simply be made the subject of a few carols, tuneful as they are. Jesus was born as a human baby for one reason: he was to be the sinless blood sacrifice that would pay for the sins of all those who would believe in Him. The red of Christmas originally stood for the Blood of Jesus. And the Green of Christmas stood – and stands – for eternal life. The message of Christmas is that Jesus has made a way for all sinners – and we are all sinners – to have eternal life, if we will accept what He has done for us and will believe in Him. Jesus has given the very best Gift of all – eternal life. But we can choose to accept or reject that gift. The decision is up to each one of us.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for sending Jesus to live as a man, to die on Calvary, and to defeat death and the grave so that we might have eternal life. Help each of us to accept that greatest gift. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Isaiah 43:1 – 2 “Now this is what the LORD says— He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze.”

In the center of a candle flame, there is a small still area of peace. And in the midst of our troubles, we can have peace as well. Peace is not a passive emotion but an active one. If we are to have peaceful spirits, we must guard our hearts against the things that can destroy our peace.

Does this mean that we have to be ostriches with our heads stuck in the sand? Far from it! True people of peace realize that there are problems; the question is this: Where is your focus? Are you obsessing about all the things going wrong in your life? Are all your energies engaged in trying to avoid unpleasantness? Life happens, and no matter how hard we try, we will have problems. But we also have the promises of God, promises of hope and promises of peace.

Do you feel isolated and frustrated? God is there. Do you feel that you are carrying heavy loads with no help in sight? God is there. Do you feel that nothing will ever go right in your life? God is still there.

It sounds like a cliche to say that God is only a prayer away, but it is still true. “But,” you say, ”I don’t know how to pray.” Well, fortunately, God hears the cries of our hearts. And even if your prayers consist of “God, help me! I’m in a mess and I can’t get out!” that is a very valid prayer.

Remember when Jesus taught about the two men who went to the temple to pray? The religious leader prayed a long elaborate prayer, praising himself. The poor tax collector, overwhelmed by a sense of his own sin, simply said, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” That simple prayer from the heart reached the Throne of God.

PRAYER: Father God, help! We are stuck in all kinds of problems. Our money is dwindling. Our businesses are failing. Christmas is coming and we aren’t sure how to care for our families. But you have promised to be with us. You said that one of Jesus’ names is Immanuel, “God with us.” Lord, be with us and help us. Amen.

 “Revelation 15:5 – 7 “After this I looked, and the temple—the tabernacle of the Testimony—was opened in heaven. And out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues, dressed in clean and bright linen and girded with golden sashes around their chests. Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.”

Originally, Moses took his tent and pitched it away from the camp as recorded in Exodus: 7-11. But later God gave Moses the plans for the tabernacle in the wilderness and the priestly garments. (Exodus 35-40) These blueprints that were later modified to build Jewish temples throughout the world. It was always understood that the original tabernacle was a model and a forerunner of what would come later on. As a Jewish believer, John would have been extremely well acquainted with these scriptures. Now John is having “AHA!” moments; after years of reading these scriptures, he sees the heavenly tabernacle and is amazed!

Here is Barclay’s description:

It is from within the tabernacle that the seven avenging angels come forth. In the center of the Holy Place within the tabernacle lay the Ark of the Covenant, the chest in which were contained the tables of the ten commandments, the essence of the Law. That is to say, these angels come out from the place where the Law of God rests and come to show that no man or nation can with impunity defy the Law of God.

They are clothed in a shining white robe and are girt about the breasts with a golden girdle. The robes of the angels are symbolic of three things. (a) Their dress is priestly dress. The robe of white fine linen and the gold embroidered girdle about the breast is the dress of the High Priest. The High Priest might well be called God’s representative among men; and these angels come forth as the avenging representatives of God. (b) Their dress is royal dress. The white linen and the high girdle are the garments of princes and of kings; and these angels come forth with the royalty of the King of kings upon them. (c) Their dress is heavenly dress. The young man at the empty tomb of Christ was clothed in a long white garment (Mark 16:5; Matthew 28:3); and the angels are the inhabitants of heaven, come to execute God’s decrees upon earth.

It is one of the four living creatures who hands them the bowls of the wrath of God. When we were thinking about the four living creatures when they first emerged on the scene (Revelation 4:7) we saw that the first was like a lion, the second like an ox, the third like a man, and the fourth like an eagle; and that, they may well symbolize all that is strongest and bravest and wisest and swiftest in nature. if that be so, it is fitting that one of them should hand the bowls of wrath to the seven angels. The bowls of wrath are to bring disasters in nature to the world; and the symbolism may well be that nature is handing itself to God to serve his purposes.

15:8 “And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter into the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels had been completed.” Time after time in the Bible, when the Glory of the Lord fills a place, the place is filled with smoke. When Solomon dedicated his magnificent temple, the Glory filled the temple. While the Glory of the Lord filled the temple, nobody could approach. 1 Kings 8:10 – 11 “And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, the cloud filled the house of the LORD so that the priests could not stand there to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.”

Barclay comments: There is the idea that the purposes of God will often be clouded to men, for no man can see into the mind of God; and there is the idea that the holiness and the glory of God are such that man in his own right can never approach God.

But in addition, there is the fact that no man could come into the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels have been completed. God’s timing is perfect. When the time has come for judgment to be executed, nothing can stop it.

There is a legend about King Canute, who was King of England, Denmark, Norway, and parts of Sweden (995 – 1035 A.D.) King Canute was a believer. Canute set his throne up on the seashore and allowed the tide to come in, apparently to prove a point about Kings and God: ‘Let all men know how empty and worthless is the power of kings, for there is none worthy of the name, but He whom heaven, earth, and sea obey by eternal laws.’ The legend continues that once Canute had carried out this demonstration, he hung his crown on a crucifix and never wore it again in honor of Almighty God.

“God Is Working His Purpose Out”

Source: Ancient and Modern: hymns and songs for refreshing worship #646

God is working his purpose out, as year succeeds to year,
God is working his purpose out, and the time is drawing near;
nearer and nearer draws the time, the time that shall surely be,
when the earth shall be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.

God is working His purpose out. The question for us is will we work with God or attempt to oppose Him? King Canute was right; we can no more oppose God than we can order the tide to stop coming in. God loves us and wants us to love Him and to serve Him, but He will never force us.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you that you have given us guidance ever since the beginning of time, if we will only listen to you. Lord, help us to hear your voice and to let you have your way in our lives. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Isaiah 26:3 – 4 “You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You and hopes confidently in You. So trust in the Lord, for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock.” (NKJV Amplified)

In 24 hours last December, my Facebook prayer groups exploded with pain! A thirteen year – old dying with septic shock. Two young mothers dying with heart failure. Law enforcement officers who wanted nothing more than to serve and protect and to celebrate Christmas with their families – all gone! U. S. military dying thousands of miles from families and friends. Facing such horrible losses, it seems ridiculous to speak about peace. How can we have peace in the face of these tragedies? And yet, the Bible tells us that God wants us to have peace and that Jesus came as the Prince of Peace.

Social media is great for connecting people, but it also allows us to hear about suffering in places we have never heard of before. Is there more suffering now than there was in the past? Probably not. But the difference is that now we hear about all of this misery in a concentrated form.

There have always been wars. There have always been refugees. There has always been starvation somewhere in the world. Climate change is not actually new; floods, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis – all have shaken the earth since time began. Even Jesus once told his disciples that they would face tribulation in this world. So, if having peaceful spirits depended on earthly events, peace would be an impossibility. And yet, God promises us peace in His word. How can we achieve this peace?

1. We must “stay our minds” on the Lord; we must constantly focus on the Lord and not on our problems. Worrying about problems only eats up your stomach lining and constricts the blood vessels in your heart.

2. How are we to “stay our minds” on the Lord? We must commit ourselves to the Lord, praying, and listening for His Voice and studying His Word, the Bible.

3. We must lean on the Lord and hope confidently in Him. Here “leaning” means to put all the weight of the cares that upset us and torment us on the Lord.

4. We must trust the Lord, who is our Rock. Here the idea is of a huge monolith such as the Rock of Gibraltar, something solid, dependable, unmovable, and unshakable, a place of refuge and safety. David the Psalmist wrote “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge..”(Psalm 18:2)

PRAYER: Father God, your children need you! We need your protection! We need your comfort! We need Someone we can lean on and trust completely! But most of all, Lord, we need your peace! Please help us to keep our minds fixed on you and give us that peace that passes all understanding, so that we can face the threatening things in our lives without fear. In the matchless Name of Jesus. Amen.

Isaiah 9: 6 – 7 “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end… The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”

When God was giving the Prophet Isaiah this prophecy, there was no such thing as peace. The Jews were steadily moving further away from God and leaving His commandments. It’s possible that wicked King Manasseh, the most wicked of the kings of Judah, ordered Isaiah’s murder. And yet, God gave this prophecy. And this prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

When Elizabeth and Mary come together, John, Elizabeth’s baby, leaps for joy in the womb and both Elizabeth and John are filled with the Holy Spirit. When the Angel Gabriel went to Mary and to Joseph individually and greeted them, it is likely that the first thing the Angel said was “peace be with you.” And when the angels appeared to the shepherds in the fields of Bethlehem, they proclaimed “peace on earth, good will to men.” In each of these situations, the Holy Spirit was there, and the mark of the Holy Spirit is peace. In Galatians 5: 22 – 23 we are told, ^“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control.”

Throughout Jesus’ ministry, He proved that He was truly the Prince of Peace. Whether calming storms on the Sea of Galilee or casting out demons, Jesus spoke peace into situations and brought peace to those who were troubled. And this peace wasn’t just some kind of “feel good” temporary manipulation. This peace was deep and abiding.

Peace is something that many people pursue, but sometimes it seems that the more one pursues peace, the more elusive it becomes. There are many methods touted as ways to achieve peace, but peace is not a thing. Peace is found in the person of Jesus Christ. Philippians 4: 4-7 tells us “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Today, we don’t need one more program or one more diet to achieve peace, even though programs and diets can certainly be useful. But the “diet” we need is a diet of our thoughts.

1. Rejoice in the Lord always! Notice, there are no restrictions placed on this rejoicing. We are not advised to merely rejoice when we feel like it, but to rejoice always, trusting that God will work things out for us.

2. Let your gentleness be evident to all…why? Because the Lord is near. If the Lord is really near, you don’t have to force because the Author of the Universe, the Supreme Authority, is near.

3. In every situation, in prayer and thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

4. And what is the result of these practices? The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, sometimes we feel as if you are very far away and we are lost children, desperate for peace. Please, Lord, send your Holy Spirit peace into our hearts and minds and spirits. Help us to remember that you are very near indeed, closer than our heartbeats. And thank you for sending your Son Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Amen.

Revelation15:1-2 “And I saw another sign in heaven, great and wonderful–it was seven angels, with seven plagues which are the final ones, because in them the wrath of God reaches its climax. And I saw what I can only call a sea of glass intermingled with fire; and I saw standing beside the sea of glass, with the harps of God, those who had emerged victorious from their struggle with the beast and with his image and with the number of his name.”

“The storm is passing over! The storm is passing over! The storm is passing over! Hallelujah!” The choir from an inner city church sang those words triumphantly, and I have never forgotten them. So many have weathered terrible storms – physical, spiritual, emotional, and financial attacks that have left them reeling. Despite their faithfulness, they suffered martyrdom. But now the time has come for these persevering saints to be rewarded. Jesus said: “Whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 16:25).Barclay states: The real victory is not prudently to preserve life but to face the worst that evil can do and if need be to be faithful to death. “May God deny you peace,” said Unamuno the Spanish mystic, “and give you glory.”

15:3-4 ”and they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb: Great and wonderful are your works, O Lord, God the Almighty; Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord? Because you alone are holy; Because all the nations will come and worship before you; Because your righteous judgments have been made plain for all to see.”

These victorious martyrs sing two songs: the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. Moses first sang his song when the Children of Israel were delivered from the Egyptians at the Red Sea, and it is found in Exodus 15:1-19. The short version of the Song of Moses is “The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation…. Who is like thee, 0 Lord, among the gods, who is like thee, majestic in holiness, terrible in glorious deeds, doing wonders?… The Lord will reign for ever and ever.”

The Song of the Lamb is one that only these martyrs can sing and is made up of quotations from the Psalms. “Great and wonderful are your works, O Lord, God the Almighty; Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord? Because you alone are holy; Because all the nations will come and worship before you; Because your righteous judgments have been made plain for all to see.” Notice that these martyrs don’t mention themselves at all; they are lost in their praises of the magnificence of the God whom they have served and for whom they have died, the God who has redeemed them. All suffering is past and now those who have suffered can see how that suffering has contributed to building the Kingdom of God.

Many times, people become discouraged and begin to hate God when bad things happen. “If God were REALLY a God of love, my child wouldn’t have died of a drug overdose!” “If God were REALLY a God of love, my elderly parent wouldn’t have died by himself in a nursing home isolated from the rest of the family by COVID restrictions!” “If God were REALLY working in my life, I wouldn’t have lost my [job/house/car/business/family/money]! We easily forget that we are living in a fallen sinful world, one in which all of us are subject to things going wrong. God has created us as beings with free will, not as puppets; and when we or others make bad choices, then terrible things can result. St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 tells us that we see “but a dim reflection as in a mirror;” in other words, we only get a small part of the big picture.

Bad things can happen. The question is, how will we respond? Will we blame God or will we allow God to use the bad things that happen in our lives to mold us and to perfect us into the men and women God wants us to be? Moses said in Psalm 90:10 “The length of our days is seventy years— or eighty if we are strong— yet their pride is but labor and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.” Our lives are only moments in eternity. The suffering that seems to go on forever will pass; the question is, how will we respond? Will we allow God to mold us or will we become increasingly bitter?

PRAYER: Father God, thank you that our suffering does not go on forever! Thank you that no matter what we are facing, you are always there watching, encouraging, and shaping us. Lord, help those who read these words to turn to you so that you will be able to shape them into the glorious beings you want them to become. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Luke 2: 8 “Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And ^[c]behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid….¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill^[e] toward men!”

Caesar Augustus ruled the Roman Empire. At that time, the Empire stretched out for roughly 10,000 kilometers. The Pax Romana, Roman Peace, was in full evidence, enforced by the Roman legions. And as a good conscientious administrator, Augustus wanted to know exactly how many citizens his empire contained. So, the decree went out from Rome – all over and every man had to return to his family’s place of origin, bringing his family along with him. The roads must have been clogged with people! Bethlehem was only a short distance from Jerusalem, so its citizens were used to travelers, but nothing like these crowds! Bethlehem was anything but peaceful! The noise of all those people and animals must have been deafening. The shepherds might have been thankful that they were out in the fields away from the insanity.

It’s a quiet night on the bleak hills outside Bethlehem. Someone has started a small fire and everyone has had their bread and cheese and wine for supper. All that can be heard is the night wind as it sighs through the grass. The sheep have bedded down and are quiet, only making occasional snuffling noises. Perhaps the shepherds have already decided who will be watching during which part of the night and are searching out comfortable places to sleep close to the sheep in case of attack by wild animals.

Suddenly the night sky blazes with heavenly light! The shepherds throw themselves flat on the ground or try to hide beside some big rocks. And then the angels deliver their incredible message! “Peace? Goodwill to men?” The first reaction of the shepherds must have been the Aramaic equivalent of “Say what???” At this point, the shepherds must have been in shock. But there was something about the angelic message that penetrated their panic, the word “peace.”

As the angels spoke the word “peace,” that peace must have actually entered the shepherds’ hearts and calmed their spirits. This peace could only have come from the Holy Spirit. And somehow that peace gave the shepherds the courage to go into Bethlehem and find the Baby Jesus.

This Christmas season has been one of many losses. Only recently we learned that a long – time friend had lost his battle with cancer and received his heavenly promotion a few days ago. We have friends who have lost loved ones to COVID and other problems. Our hearts go out to all of these families, particularly to any young children involved. A grieving husband told us recently that his young daughter keeps praying for God to send her mother back by Christmas; each time he hears her, his heart breaks all over again. For griefs as deep as these, there are no words. Only the peace of the Holy Spirit will be sufficient.

PRAYER: Father, many of us are grieving and hurting. We have pains in places that nobody can reach. Will you please send your Holy Spirit peace into our hearts and minds to heal us? In the mighty and precious Name of Jesus, Amen.

Revelation 14:12- 20 “Here is a call for the endurance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.”

2020 has been one of those years nobody wants to live over again! So much suffering! So much loss! And yet, throughout all of these problems, there have been those who have persevered and whose faith has shown brightly. Thanks to Facebook, I have been following the saga of a missionary family in Senegal. Four weeks ago, the husband/father was doing some home repairs when he fell three stories to a cement floor! The family had to send this man to a small local clinic, from which he was transferred to a hospital in Dakar, then to a hospital in Paris, and finally to Jacksonville, Florida. Miraculously, this man escaped with rib fractures and minor damage to his spine and some other injuries that are resolving. But reading the wife’s posts has been incredibly uplifting! Despite all the fear and all the life – threatening possibilities, this family’s faith has been a beacon of hope. Truly, those who live in the Lord leave deeds that live on and inspire others. This does NOT mean that we earn our way into heaven. Barclay says,“When you leave this earth, all that you can take with you is yourself. If you come to the end of this life still one with Christ, you will take with you a character tried and tested like gold, which has something of his reflection in it; and, if you take with you to the world beyond a character like that, blessed are you.”

Revelation 14:14 – 20 “And I looked and saw a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was One like the Son of Man, with a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. Then another angel came out of the temple, crying out in a loud voice to the One seated on the cloud, “Swing Your sickle and reap, because the time has come to harvest; for the crop of the earth is ripe.” So the One seated on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested. Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. Still another angel, with authority over the fire, came from the altar and called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vine of the earth, because its grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the grapes of the earth, and he threw them into the great wine press of God’s wrath. And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and the blood that flowed from it rose as high as the bridles of the horses for a distance of 1,600 stadia. (184 miles or 296 kilometers.)

For thousands of years, the prophets have been foretelling a time when God would bring a final judgment. The prophet Joel said, “Let the nations be roused and advance to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I will sit down to judge all the nations on every side. Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the wine press is full; the wine vats overflow because their wickedness is great.” In Mark 4:26-29 Jesus tells his disciples, “The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seed on the ground. …And as soon as the grain is ripe, he swings the sickle, because the harvest has come.” Now John sees these prophecies being fulfilled.

Jesus is the Son of Man with the golden crown. In Matthew 24:36 Jesus tells his disciples,”No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Now an angel comes from the heavenly temple and gives Jesus the permission to to gather his own people who love him. At the same time, an angel with a sickle is also given a similar order by an angel with authority over the perpetual fire in the heavenly temple. This angel is to harvest those destined for judgment.

Why the description of the blood? This amount of blood is sufficient to fully cover the nation of Israel. This judgment will include the whole land and will be absolutely complete.

What are we to do with these visions? These visions have stood the test of time and of scholarship. You can choose to believe or to ignore these visions. But remember that Jesus warned his disciples that the Kingdom of Heaven would come like a thief in the night, without any warning. None of us knows how much time we have left; the only time we have is now. The Book of Revelation is full of warnings and promises: warnings to those who refuse to worship God and promises for those who do choose to follow Him. Joshua gave a challenge to the Children of Israel, “Choose this day whom you will serve…but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for loving us so much that you sent Jesus to us as a baby, to live and die as a sinless man, the perfect blood offering for our sins. Lord, help each one who reads this to choose to serve you! In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.