December 22, 2017
Zechariah prophesied that a “stone” would be “laid” by God to “remove iniquity” in “one day.” Who is this “Stone?” Isn’t he the “Precious Cornerstone” of Isaiah’s prophecy (Isa. 28:16)? Isn’t he the “stone that the builders rejected (Psa. 118:22, 1 Pet. 2:6-8)? Isn’t he the Lamb with “seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God” (Rev. 5:6)? And what was “engraved” upon that Stone? Wasn’t it the piercing of His hands and feet and side that “removed the iniquity” of us all? Didn’t the Lord say, “Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isa. 49:16)? Yes, this Stone is certainly the Messiah, Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:20)!
Join me in looking up each of the Scripture references listed above, and you will experience the joy and profound wonder of our Precious Cornerstone, Jesus Christ!
December 21, 2017
Not your usual Christmas card verse, yet John’s revelation pulled back the curtain to show Christ’s coming from a heavenly perspective. The “dragon” represents Satan. The “woman” is Israel. And the “male child” is the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Israel has been under almost continuous persecution since Christ’s birth. Yet, in the last days there will be a season of relief (see v. 14 “she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent”). After this the persecution will worsen towards Israel and those who have come to faith in Jesus (v. 17 “her offspring”) because Satan will know his days are numbered.
There may be both good days and hard days ahead, but we can be confident that the Lord is with us and has a plan for us. At Christmas we celebrate Christ’s coming and the confidence we have that He is coming again to end Satan’s worldly reign.
December 20, 2017
“Be strong. Do the work. Do not fear.”
These are the three instructions the Lord gave to the Israelites who had returned from Babylonian captivity. Zerubbabel was the grandson of Jehoiachin, penultimate king of Judah. He led the first group of captives back to Jerusalem. He and Joshua, the high priest, led the people to rebuild the temple, but the people had been putting their own households first. After rebuilding the foundation years earlier, the temple still lay in ruins. The people had not finished what they had begun. They had become busy with their own homes, putting their own house ahead of the Lord’s.
Perhaps they felt they didn’t have the money or the expertise. Perhaps they feared falling short of the “glory” of Solomon’s Temple (Hag. 2:3). Whatever their reasons, they had stopped working. So, God gave them three instructions: “Be strong. Do the work. Do not fear.” And He gave them one powerful promise: “I am with you.”
He still makes this promise to us today. As the angel told Mary, “Do not fear. The Lord is with you. For nothing is impossible with God!” (Luke 1:28-37).
December 19, 2017
Though the Lord God is transcendent, high and holy above all creation, He draws near to the humble of heart. He “regards the lowly,” leaning in to “lift them up” (James 4:10). But the Lord “resists the proud” (James 4:6), fully aware of them, yet aloof.
Does God seem near or far from you today? If the distance seems great, God has not moved. Perhaps your pride has taken you afar. Turn and draw near. Repent of pride and self-effort. Humble yourself before the Lord in Jesus’ name. For our God is high and holy, but He is also humble, willing to stoop down and save sinners that call on His name.
December 18, 2017
When I was around ten years of age, I asked my grandmother, “Where did God come from?” And she responded, “Teman.” I remember she got out her big, black KJV and turned to Habakkuk and pointed out the verse to me. Of course, my next question to her was, “Where’s Teman?”
As I grew older, I came to understand from studying the Scriptures that God is eternal and self-existent. As Moses declared, “From everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Psa. 90:2). God has no beginning and no end. He is not “from” anywhere because He is everywhere. He is omnipresent.
Yet, as the prophet Habakkuk praised the Lord, he remembered how God had come to Moses and the Israelites in the land to the Southeast of Israel. This was where God had met with Moses on the Mountain of God, also known by the various names of Mt. Sinai, Mt. Horeb, or “Mount Paran.” Habakkuk was calling for God to come and reveal Himself to Israel just as He had to Moses.
Are you looking for God? Don’t worry. He’ll find you. As the apostle Paul wrote, “He is not far from each one of us” (Acts 17:27).
December 17, 2017
In the midst of his prophecy against Nineveh, the prophet Nahum gives three wonderful attributes of God. The first is God’s goodness. God is essentially good. He is goodness itself. Whatever good we know, it comes from God. Whatever goodness we have contemplated, He is best. The second attribute is about God’s power to protect and defend as a “stronghold” those who are in trouble. God’s power is tempered by His goodness. He is omnipotent, yet gentle. His absolute power is not corrupted because of His absolute goodness. The third attribute is God’s wisdom. “He knows.” What does God know? God is omniscient. He knows all. Yet, God has particular interest in “those who trust in Him.” He especially knows them.
God is good, powerful and wise. Let us put all of our trust in Him!
December 16, 2017
Those believers who “come out of the great tribulation” will dwell with the Lamb, who is the Lord Jesus Christ. He will shepherd them as David’s Psalm 23 described. And the tears of their tribulation will be wiped away by the Lord Himself.
No more hunger, no more thirst, no more crying, for the Lord Himself will shepherd them.
December 16, 2017
John saw Christ the Lamb open the first of seven seals. The first four seals revealed the four horsemen of the apocalypse. The word “apocalypse” comes from the Greek word meaning, “to unveil” or “to reveal.” Thus, the title of the book, the “Revelation of Jesus Christ.” The identity of the four horsemen is a matter of much debate. But a careful comparison of Christ’s description of the last days in Matthew 24 with Revelation 6 is helpful. The first rider has a crown, a bow and rides a white horse. This is not Christ, although he does seem to masquerade as such. This rider represents religious deception, those that come claiming to be Christ, “deceiving many” (Matt. 24:5). In the last days, there will be a great religious deception that will “conquer” (“overcome”) many.
Yet, those who know the Lord Jesus Christ will not be overcome. For they are “overcomers” in Jesus’ name. As John wrote in his first epistle, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 5:4-5).
December 14, 2017
John the Revelator witnessed the singing and shouting of “ten thousand times ten thousand” of the angelic host, living creatures and the elders as they worshiped the Lamb. Who is this “Lamb?” He is the “the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David” (Rev. 5:5), “the firstborn of the dead” (Rev. 1:5), and the “Alpha and Omega, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty” (Rev. 1:8). He is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Don’t be surprised that He was born in a stable. After all, where else would a lamb be born? He is the Lamb of God. And He is worthy of our worship.
What is worship? It is best described in a two-part response:
1) Recognize what He is worth.
2) Give Him what He is worth.
What gift do you give the One who owns everything? The Magi gave Him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. But perhaps you should give Him the one thing He doesn’t have, namely, you! Give Him yourself. Give Him your all in all. For He is worthy to receive all that you have and all that you are. Worthy is the Lamb!
December 13, 2017
The book of Revelation can be understood as having three divisions. Jesus instructed the apostle John to “write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this” (Rev. 1:19). Revelation 4:1 begins the “things which must take place after” section, which is the third and future section. Beginning in chapter four, John writes from a heavenly perspective having been called up to heaven by the “first voice,” which belonged to Jesus, whose voice sounded “like a trumpet” (see Rev. 1:10-11).
Jesus drew back the curtain, unveiling the last days to John from heaven’s viewpoint. He did this to encourage believers to be faithful, watchful and confident that the Lord is sovereign and coming again.