Day 87: Jude 1-Revelation 17:18

The Beginning of the End 

Today, we begin the final book of the Bible: Revelation. But before that, we read Jude, which serves as a bit of a warning. It implores us all to remember that although God delivered His people from Egypt, He destroyed those who didn't believe. But we must build ourselves up in the mercy of Christ that was freely given to us. We must keep ourselves in God's love. 

And so, Revelation begins. 

I'd like to point out that the book of Revelation begins with a blessing for each person who reads it. So that should make you feel good about the past 86 days! 

The first chapter is dedicated to describing Jesus in a different way--not by his actions, but by his spirit. He was. He is. And he is to come yet again. And he is alive for ever and ever. 

In chapter 2, we get this amazing verse in 2:7--

Whoever has ears, let him hear what the Spirit says. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. 

Isn't that beautiful? We all have overcome our past--hello, we are in the present, we've made it this far. But we all have so much more to overcome, and that will not be forgotten by God. 

It's at this point I feel that I should explain I have a bit of history with Revelation. I was terrified of it. But in reading it this afternoon, I came across Revelation 2:10-11. Don't be afraid of what's to come. We will be tested. We will suffer. But we must remain faithful. Our faith will allow us to overcome. And it says that when we overcome, we will not be hurt by the second death. YES! Okay, we can read the rest of Revelation calmly now. 

Wow. Okay, to be completely honest, I got so engulfed in the reading of chapters 4-8. They describe the Throne of Heaven, and everything that is to come. For a little context in chapter 5: Jesus is considered the Lamb of God--an innocent who's blood was shed. From there, we move on to the Seven Seals--where I lost all focus on writing a post and was engulfed in the word of God (as one, perhaps, should be). Check out the chart below for an explanation better than any I could provide. 

Chapters 9-11 talk about what happens on the earth with each Trumpet sound from the Seals, and I will say, it's not pretty. BUT! Revelation 11:15-19 will provide you with great comfort--trust me. 

Revelation 12 is really cool, it talks about how Satan was expelled from Heaven. Here's the bad news: he was drop-kicked straight down to... Earth. Fear not, we have a home in heaven where Satan is nonexistent. Furthermore, it says that Satan's time is short. However, he is staging a war against us. He is staging a war against our faith. And we must remain faithful to the Lord, we must continue to accept Salvation from Jesus Christ, THE Lord and Savior. 

Chapter 13 gets crazy--a beast from the sea and a beast from the Earth come up, and let me tell you: You have to read the descriptions for yourselves. Don't you worry though, the Lord will  come to save us. 

In Chapter 16, there are seven plagues that come upon the Earth, but they are just, and they are from God. The plagues are meant for those who have shed the blood of the saints and prophets--the servants of God. It all ends with a great earthquake--larger than any earthquake that has ever been, or ever could be. In Chapter 17 we're introduced to the woman riding the beast. Essentially, she represents evil and deception that overcomes the Earth. 

And that's that. Tomorrow, we're finished. With the whole challenge. Seriously. The entire Bible. Tomorrow's reading is significantly shorter than previous days--it's all uphill from here! 

Tomorrow's reading: Revelation 18:1-Revelation 22:21

Have a wonderful night, and I'll catch you tomorrow with the final reading!

Jill Jafarace

Director of Student Ministries

New Leaf UMC