Tag: Revelation

The Revelation of Jesus Christ to John

  • The Scrolls of Dr. Luke

    The Scrolls of Dr. Luke

    Revelation 5:1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals.

    Imagine having been given a tremendous responsibility to write the Holy Scrolls of God! Imagine Christ Jesus, risen King of all creation having instructed you to record the Gospel of the Cross and Resurrection for God’s Holy Church.

    Why was a Scribe so highly regarded? Few men (and only the learned) could read and write the Holy Word of God.

    Jesus had spoken with the authority of a Scribe, even as learned one teaching from a Higher Authority.  Perhaps less than five men in one hundred of those who heard Jesus teach could read. And perhaps only a dozen among a thousand could write down the words of Jesus in any language.

    For the Apostle John to have been given by Christ the very Word of Revelation (above); for the Apostle Matthew, a lowly (but literate) tax collector to have been given the charge to record the Gospel; for Luke, a doctor to the Apostles and follower of the Way to be given the charge to write down the Gospel being preached to all the world and in his most literate meticulous medical way to record the record of the Acts of the Apostles: these from the Throne of the Lord carry tremendous responsibility and eternal consequence of getting it right.

    In the Name of God, the Gospel Truth must be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

    By witness of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit the Gospel truth is Good News we can take to the bank of eternity.

    The first Scroll of Luke (the Gospel of Luke) begins in this way from the witness given to him at many different times, by eye witnesses of Jesus:

    Luke 1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

    Dr. Luke has recorded the events leading up to the Cross and resurrection.  Now in the Acts of the Apostles Luke will relate the journey and witness of the Apostles taking the Gospel into all the world.

    To be continued…

     

  • A Flicker of Faith

    A Flicker of Faith

    Proverbs 24:20 For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out.

    Beloved brother; dearly beloved sister:

    I know you have been ‘lukewarm‘ in your belief in Christ. You have been lukewarm in your faith in Jesus. You have been cold in your heart for His church and unthankful in your daily life.

    Your offering has been stingy (if you have even returned any of what is already His).

    And your prayer?  … Probably as infrequent as my prayers so often become.

    The flame of His light dimly flickers in the fruit of your witness. You resist the fire of His Holiness each time the Lord calls you to repentance.

    Yes… at times, we are lukewarm for the risen Lord, Christ Jesus. At times, we fail miserably in our Christian… our christian… our not-so-Christlike mortal life.

    The Light in You

    Luke 11:33 “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.

    34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. 35 Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness.

    36 If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

    John 1:4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

    5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

    Has the Lord’s light left your heart?

    OR do you answer our risen Lord’s voice at the door of your heart saying: ‘Repent, beloved?’

    Jesus seeks the lost. He welcomes the return of the prodigal christian.

    For to the church at Ephesus, the risen Christ also revealed through John:

    Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent…

    7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

    To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

  • Who is it? – 2

    Who is it? – 2

    church-usRevelation 3:17 For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 

    st peters papal altar and baldacchinoJesus? At my door?

    Of course He knows my works, but shall I let Him in?

    How can I stall Him just a little?

    (For Jesus has said: “Because you are lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth.)

    What can I do? Is it too late? Should I open the door just a little?

    The church at Laodicea had an urgent problem. If the risen Jesus Christ is knocking at the door, what must we do to make ourselves ready for this unexpected returning owner of our church?

     18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.

    lakewood insideWhat shall we do with our smiling ushers with open palms?

    blessed virginWhat shall we do with the indulgences for the idols?

    How will we fund the evangelism of our books?

    How will we pay for the grande cathedrals of our Saints?

     

    Revelation 3:6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

     

    18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.

    19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

     Why are you so quick to glorify men and so slow to glorify God?

    Why do you not lay down your life for the poor and take up your cross to follow Christ?

    Christ Jesus, the Living God! our risen Lord loves His bride the Church.

    It is our Lord who stands at the door of lukewarm christians. It is our Lord who knocks at the door of our hardened hearts.

    20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock.

    If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

    Is your Communion with Christ Jesus something He would want to spit out?

    Should the Lord knock on the door of your heart and give you words of reproof and discipline, would you repent?

    Would you invite Jesus in to eat with you and you with Him?

    Luke 22:19  And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying,

    This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.

    Revelation 3: 21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.

    22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”