The Four certainties of Revelation- Part 2| Chris

This message was preached  by Chris at Word of Grace Church on July 31st, 2016. To listen/download the audio please click here. To listen to the Sunday's worship and prophetic contributions please click here

We are looking at 4 certainties

We saw that God is concerned for His people and he answers our prayer and He is the king who is coming again.

Let's not let the mystery of Revelation over shadow the certainty in it.

We are going to talk about something little more real today. Revelation is about real people, real hardship and it raises real awareness that we should expect no different.

Revelation is written by John. Rev 1:9- “I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.” Companion of suffering and patient in endurance.

John is not on a private island on vacation but exiled and in suffering. The churches he is writing to are mostly 7. One of them in Jerusalem was having such severe persecution that they had to flee from one city to another. The result is the gospel spread. It's a by product of persecution.

In John 15:18-20 –“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.”

3.      We are promised this that we will be hated and persecuted. Just as Jesus was persecuted they will do the same to you.

Rev 6 last week we spoke of how Jesus hears all our prayers and that heaven falls silent so He can hear from His people. This was the 7^th Scroll, but there were 6 scrolls before that.

The 6 scrolls

·        War

·        Famine

·        Pestilence

·        Saints crying for avenge

·        Earth quakes 16,17

·        We should not anticipate ease.

Rev 7:14- “I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Is the bride immune from this?

These have come out of the great tribulations. The design might be to bring judgment on those who have rejected him. Suffering is part of our life. In Exodus they have a cloud of fire and cloud.

We have His presence dwelling in us.

Q. How does this look in daily life?

Rom 8: 35-37- “ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”            

Troubles are designed to destroy your faith by the devil. But these things don't separate us from God love. But when it doesn't do that it makes us conquerors. So these things increase our faith and we thrive.

In the midst of the difficulty Good makes us aware of his presence. This gives us the awareness of his presence in a biblical way

4.      Blessings what is it truly from a biblical perspective

Rev 1:3- “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.”

Rev 14:13- “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on”

Rev 16:15- “Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed.”

Rev 19:9- “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb”

Rev 20:6- “Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection.”

Rev 22:14- “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.”

These are blessings decreed by God.

Let's look at this from Joseph's life:

a.      Joseph has a dream and knows it true and holds on to it. So if we hold firm to the word of God we will be blessed

b.      Die in the Lord. Those who complete their course to completion. When Jesus comes we are found ready because we have endured and not overcome by Templeton. Like Joseph thrown in a well, then resists temptation and stays faithful.

c.      How are they blessed? Attend the marriage supper of the Lamb as the bride not as guests. No judgment or fear of hell. Reign with him forever

We get to be with Him forever

In Joseph reigning alongside Pharaoh, we get to reign with the king of Kings. This gives is a picture and gives us a hope. It does not take away the hardship but gives hope. Heb 12:2 says Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before him, for his bride. It compelled him forward.

He puts a joy in us. That's biblical blessing. In the times when we feel we cannot take another step let's remember Jude 24-25- “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.