Revelation 1:4-7
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4. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace
from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who
are before his throne,
5. and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead,
and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our
sins by his blood
6. and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory
and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
7. Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even
those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him.
Even so, Amen.
Grace and Peace from the Trinity
 |
| Isle of Patmos |
“Grace and peace”, was Paul’s
salutation in all 13 of his letters to the churches, as well as to Titus.
Curiously, he added “mercy”, when writing to Timothy. Peter uses “grace and
peace” in his second epistle and Jude adds mercy and love to peace. John in his
second letter also adds mercy, but now in Revelation, he gives the simple greeting,
which we find most commonly in the epistles. I simply want to point out that it
is important to understand that in the Word of God, these greetings are not
just customary, but carry the full weight of divine blessing.
This book is addressed
directly to seven churches in Asia Minor and they are literally the first
recipients of it. However, it is worth noting that there were more than seven
churches in this Roman province in John’s day. Given the symbolism and the
prophetic nature of the book, we can easily surmise that only seven were chosen
to serve a wider purpose. Seven is the number of perfect completeness and I
believe that these churches represent the church of all ages. I think that
their characteristics are the same as those we find in different churches in
every period of history. I also tend to think that each one represents a
dominant type of church in seven historical periods, the Laodicean church
standing for the dominant church of our times. I will write more about this, as
we come to chapters two and three.
Revelation of Jesus Christ
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 |
| Landscape on Patmos; traditional site of John's cave is on the nearest hillside (the large, white building). |
I finished my annual reading through the Bible (twice through the New Testament) a few days ago and have been thinking of what book to study and present on this blogspot through the rest of 2018. Since we went through Daniel's prophecy last year, it is logical to follow with the book of Revelation. So we begin today. If some of you are wondering about the study of Ecclesiastes, we will continue to post articles here intermittently from those immensely important observations of King Solomon.
Ecclesiastes 4
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Chapter 4
1. Again I saw all the oppressions that
are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no
one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there
was no one to comfort them.
2. And I thought the dead who are
already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive.
3. But better than both is he who has not
yet been and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.
4. Then I saw that all toil and all
skill in work come from a man's envy of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a
striving after wind.
5. The fool folds his hands and eats
his own flesh.
6. Better is a handful of quietness
than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind.
7. Again, I saw vanity under the
sun:
8. one person who has no other, either
son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eyes are never
satisfied with riches, so that he never asks, "For whom am I toiling and
depriving myself of pleasure?" This also is vanity and an unhappy
business.
9. Two are better than one, because
they have a good reward for their toil.
10. For if they fall, one will lift up
his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to
lift him up!
11. Again, if two lie together, they
keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?
12. And though a man might prevail
against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
13. Better was a poor and wise youth
than an old and foolish king who no longer knew how to take advice.
14. For he went from prison to the
throne, though in his own kingdom he had been born poor.
15. I saw all the living who move about under the sun, along with
that youth who was to stand in the king's place.
16. There was no end of all the people,
all of whom he led. Yet those who come later will not rejoice in him. Surely
this also is vanity and a striving after wind.
A news crew, complete with a cameraman and interviewer,
crowded the room of an old man on his bed. He said repeatedly, “Go away, get
away!” Yet he was cordial and kind to his visitors, prompting the interviewer
to ask, “Who do you want to go away?” It is clear to me that he was accosting
unseen beings, who had accompanied him for decades and were now claiming his
soul. Charles Templeton was the mentor of a young preacher by the name of Billy
Graham.
Ecclesiastes 3:9-22
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Eternity in the heart
9. What gain has the worker from his toil?
10.
I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy
with.
11.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into
man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the
beginning to the end.
12.
I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do
good as long as they live;
13.
also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this
is God's gift to man.
14. I perceived that whatever God does
endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God
has done it, so that people fear before him.
15.
That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God
seeks what has been driven away.
The purpose of this book is to provoke the reader to think and
to rightly assess his life and actions. Too many go through the motions of life
with no regard to the purpose, for which they live. They tend to be mechanical,
functioning like a machine, habitual and routine. The practice of preaching is
designed to disturb the sleeping conscience and warn the soul of the startling
speed, at which he is hurtling towards his destiny. The question, with which
this section begins… “What gain has the
worker from his toil”… is directed towards the individual to cause him to
sincerely consider, if there is any real purpose in his actions (v.9). The
answer is not given, but it is assumed that there is no real profit in that for
which the bulk of the world’s population is involved.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
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Chapter 3
Timing
1. For everything
there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2.
a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up
what is planted;
3.
a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build
up;
4.
a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to
dance;
5.
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to
embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6.
a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast
away;
7.
a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to
speak;
8.
a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.
An
honest study of Ecclesiastes destroys a certain falsified Christianity, based
on human goodness and compassion. An old friend of mine referred to this as “The
Bleeding Hearts Club”. He categorized its members under a banner of external “saintliness”,
who revel in the gentle breeze of tender speech, peaceful tolerance and a trusting
acceptance of all. They are appalled at every evidence of anger, voices raised
in protest and the severity of discipline. They all but eliminate the
exposure of sin from their conversation and eternal punishment from their creed.
Their love covers a multitude of sins, without any blood sacrifice whatsoever.
Many
over-simplify God, in order to fit Him into their mentality. They think that
they understand him and are scandalized by the entrance of a manifestation from
the presence of God that differs from their concept. They exclaim, “God would
never do that!” They claim to have
learned that the Creator is always involved in the positive and good. They find
it difficult to accept a Sovereign, who can be angered, capable of hate and involved
in casting people into hell. I very clearly recall the confession of one lady
Bible-teacher: “I cannot believe that my god would cast anyone into hell.” (I
purposely neglected to capitalize the “g” in god. I believe she was an
idolatress, who had created a false god in her mind.)
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