Luxury Goods No More

Posted on by korgrocker

“The merchants of the world will weep and mourn for her, for there is no one left to buy their goods. 
And they will weep and throw dust on their heads to show their grief. And they will cry out, “How terrible, how terrible for that great city! The shipowners became wealthy by transporting her great wealth on the seas. In a single moment it is all gone.” Rejoice over her fate, O heaven and people of God and apostles and prophets! For at last God has judged her for your sakes.”
Revelation‬ ‭18:11, 19-20‬ ‭NLT

The precarious nature of the world economic system has been exposed. We have received hints of what this might look like in this century. The financial meltdown around 2008. The impact of the war in Ukraine. The Covid pandemic. It doesn’t take much to shock the world economy into recession or worse. Babylon is a picture for a global social-religious-economic hybrid that has its foundations on nothing more substantial than thin air.

The impact of the destruction of “Babylon” is described in great detail in Revelation 18 – a sobering read at the best of times. But Jesus taught us about the folly of hanging our coats on the Babylonian peg. He taught constantly about a new Kingdom. God’s Kingdom. The true and lasting Kingdom. But making the transition from the kingdom of the world, “Babylon”, to God’s Kingdom was a step too far for some. We read about the “Rich Young Ruler” in Matthew 19:21-22, “Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.” However, Zacchaeus managed it. In Luke 19:8-9 we read, “Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.”

God brought an end to “Babylon” for the sake of His people. Only lasting fruit in His Kingdom will survive the transition into our Heavenly home.

Dear Jesus. Only You have the words to eternal life. Only You can show us the way to the father, because only You are the way, the truth and the life. we praise and worship You today. Amen.

Consuming Fire

Posted on by korgrocker

“She glorified herself and lived in luxury, so match it now with torment and sorrow. She boasted in her heart, ‘I am queen on my throne. I am no helpless widow, and I have no reason to mourn.’ Therefore, these plagues will overtake her in a single day— death and mourning and famine. She will be completely consumed by fire, for the Lord God who judges her is mighty.”
Revelation‬ ‭18:7-8‬ ‭NLT

It looks as though the vision portrays an immediate, plague-induced collapse of the world system called Babylon. Judgement and fire follow. The world system and religion glorified itself. Pride and boasting prevailed. The throne of individual lives became the focus. Self satisfaction was the norm. But our mighty God was having none of this behaviour, and His fire, following the plagues, instantly burns it all up. The fire followed God’s righteous judgements. 

The world system is dominated by “Me! Me! Me!”. People stay awake at night thinking of ways to improve their lot in life, even if it means trampling on someone else in the process. We boast about what we have achieved. We take pride in our conquests. Selfishness rules the lives of those in the world. But 1 Corinthians 3:13 reads, “But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value.” Obviously, the world system has, ultimately, no value at all. The world system called Babylon disappeared in a puff of smoke. Gone forever without trace.

There is a cost in following God’s ways. And one thing for sure, glorifying self will not be a part of it. Jesus taught about the cost of following Him. In Matthew 10:38-39, he said, “If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” There is no room in a pilgrim’s life for selfish living. It’s Jesus’ way, His way alone. So we pilgrims ask ourselves the question – who is on the throne of our lives? In response, we live out our lives, always at the foot of the Cross. Always conscious of what He has done for us. When we come to God in repentance, accepting His death for our sins, we die to our selfish nature, and instead put God fairly and squarely on the throne of our lives.

We do not need to fear the fires of Judgement Day. We are not Babylon followers. Instead, we follow God’s ways, storing treasure in Heaven, safe from the fires of judgement.

Dear Father God. Please forgive us for our selfish ways. It’s Your way, or no way. For ever and ever. Amen.

Sins Piled High

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then I heard another voice calling from heaven, “Come away from her, my people. Do not take part in her sins, or you will be punished with her. For her sins are piled as high as heaven, and God remembers her evil deeds. Do to her as she has done to others. Double her penalty for all her evil deeds. She brewed a cup of terror for others, so brew twice as much for her.”
Revelation‬ ‭18:4-6‬ ‭NLT

In John’s vision, the frantic outpouring of plagues has been replaced by what is more like an overview. We’ve been through the trees, looking at the detail, but now we’re getting a drone shot, as it were, of the wood, providing a summary of the impact of what has happened. God’s people are warned to keep away from the world system. It is so corrupted by wickedness, that the sins are piled up to the point that they reach Heaven. This is a time of retribution for the disgraceful way God’s people have been treated, with the “voice calling from Heaven” proposing that the punishment should be double that committed by the world and its “evil deeds”. 

Should we pilgrims separate ourselves from the world system around us, as the voice from Heaven implied? Should we all join a monastery or convent? Swapping our everyday clothes for those worn by monks or nuns? Spending our lives without TV, cars, and shops, instead growing our own food and spending our spare time in prayer within the monastery grounds? Although there is some merit in such a life style, I don’t believe it is for everyone, by a huge margin. In His wonderful prayer in John 17, Jesus prayed, “I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do.” (John‬ ‭17:14-16‬). The Apostle James, Jesus’ half-brother, expressed very strongly the dichotomy between the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of the world. He said, “You adulterers! Don’t you realise that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.” (James‬ ‭4:4).

But coming back to our verse today, where the voice from Heaven entreated God’s people not to get caught up in the world system and its sins. Jesus taught that there is a way to live in the world but not be a part of it. We can do so by putting our service to God at the highest priority. We extend God’s love and grace to the sinful world around us, sharing the Gospel through our acts of service, selflessly expending our lives and resources on those most in need. But in the process we make sure that we don’t become corrupted by those we serve. We must objectively discern where the dangers lie and keep well away.

Practically, we avoid anything that would corrupt our Godly way of life. So instead of walking through a red light district, we take the long way round. Instead of channel hopping the TV, we selectively choose the channels that will not offend. Instead of getting caught up in the office gossip we walk away. We stay away from all sorts of temptation. As someone once said, we cannot stop birds from flying over our heads, but we can stop them from nesting in our hair. We discern the dangers of temptation and act accordingly.

James didn’t imply that we should cut ourselves off from the world around us. He exhorted us not to become friends of the world, being sucked into the world systems and cultures, to the extent that we start to become absorbed into everything the world gets involved in, and particularly its sin. By taking a step back and discerning what the world systems are about, we will be able to keep ourselves in the sweet spot of a relationship with God.

The old Apostle John wrote in his first epistle, “Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.” (1 John‬ ‭2:15-17‬). Wise words indeed.

As we are seeing in this chapter in Revelation, the world system will not end well. Let’s diligently ensure that we don’t go down with it.

Dear Father. Please help us to be strong, with a resolve to stand against all the temptations that come our way in the worldly system around us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Bright Angel

Posted on by korgrocker

“After all this I saw another angel come down from heaven with great authority, and the earth grew bright with his splendour.”
Revelation‬ ‭18:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In John’s vision, an angel appears from Heaven. John was told that he had “great authority” and every where he went the earth lit up, brightened by “his splendour“. Why would that be significant? We will see in the next few verses the important message he had to declare, but initially this bright being illuminated an earth darkened by the wickedness of the beast and his followers.

Perhaps one reason he was so lit up, was because he had just come straight from the presence of God. Remember the Old Testament story where something similar happened with Moses? We read in Exodus 34:29-30, “When Moses came down Mount Sinai carrying the two stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, he wasn’t aware that his face had become radiant because he had spoken to the Lord. So when Aaron and the people of Israel saw the radiance of Moses’ face, they were afraid to come near him.” The people were not comfortable with his bright face, so Moses had to wear a veil, as described in Exodus 34:33, “When Moses finished speaking with them, he covered his face with a veil.” But no veil was necessary to cover our angel, newly arrived on Planet Earth.

There is one thing we Christians have to be careful of. That is, how do we appear to other people? Is our visage bright and cheerful, or do we look as though we have just taken a sip of vinegar? Are we smiling or miserable? You see, it is no good us pilgrims trying to share the Gospel with others with a miserable face. If our body language is at variance to our message. If we are excited about our relationship with God, as we should be, then others around us should be able to pick up our excitement. Anecdotally, Francis of Assisi has been credited with the saying, “Preach the Gospel, and if necessary use words”. Whether true or not, the point is that the delivery of what we say, and our body language when we speak, must be in step.

I’m personally excited about God, about the wonders of His creation, about His transforming power, about His accessibility, and I’m excited about Jesus, His Son, who gave up His life, taking on board the punishment for all mankind’s sin, and giving us instead His righteousness. And we can now enter into God’s presence, intimately empowered to call Him “Daddy”. In my opinion it is impossible to have a miserable face when we consider all of that!

Father God. How can we express our love and gratitude enough. With faces shining with our love for You, we worship You today. Amen.

Prostitute No More

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then the angel said to me, “The waters where the prostitute is ruling represent masses of people of every nation and language. The scarlet beast and his ten horns all hate the prostitute. They will strip her naked, eat her flesh, and burn her remains with fire. For God has put a plan into their minds, a plan that will carry out his purposes. They will agree to give their authority to the scarlet beast, and so the words of God will be fulfilled. And this woman you saw in your vision represents the great city that rules over the kings of the world.””
Revelation‬ ‭17:15-18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Oh dear! It seems as though something has gone wrong with the world religious cult, referred to as the “great prostitute”. All of a sudden, it seems, the “scarlet beast and his ten horns” have fallen out with this religion followed by the “masses of people of every nation and language” and have decided to destroy it. The angel’s description is graphic, and what it means symbolically amounts to a brutal put down of all who diligently follow then “great prostitute“. Perhaps, the devil finally realised that the cult’s worship had replaced what he really desired, which was worship of himself. But God had a plan, and you can just imaging Him whispering in the devil’s ear, “Look out – you’re being side-lined here, they don’t want to worship you anymore”. But God’s plan was profound. He was setting up the beast for annihilation, which we will read about in the next chapter in Revelation.

We read in Psalm 119:89, “Your eternal word, O Lord, stands firm in heaven.” Isaiah 40:7-8 says, “…. And so it is with people. The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.” The problem with anything built on a God-less foundation is that it will eventually collapse and disappear. In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus taught that anything built on other than His teaching will eventually collapse. We read, “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.” (Matthew‬ ‭7:24‬). I’m writing this just after watching the late Queen Elizabeth’s funeral service, held on 19th September 2022 in Westminster Abbey, London. Here was a monarch whose passing, after over seventy years, has left people feeling bereft and a bit insecure. But she was human – still a remarkable and dedicated servant of course – but someone who cannot provide the security we have in our Heavenly Father. He is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow.

On what foundation are we pilgrims building? We are servants of the Most High, dedicated to His service in an increasingly secular world. And our foundation is God Himself. Psalm 18:31 reads, “For who is God except the Lord? Who but our God is a solid rock?”. Hebrews 12:28 says, “Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe.”

There is an old hymn entitled, “My hope is built on nothing less” and the chorus goes;
On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;
all other ground is sinking sand,
all other ground is sinking sand.

There is no other foundation that will endure like God’s.

Dear Father. We praise and worship the solid Rock. You watch over us and the affairs of men and we can rest secure in Your protection and love. Amen.

John’s Amazement

Posted on by korgrocker

““Why are you so amazed?” the angel asked. “I will tell you the mystery of this woman and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns on which she sits. This calls for a mind with understanding: The seven heads of the beast represent the seven hills where the woman rules. They also represent seven kings. Five kings have already fallen, the sixth now reigns, and the seventh is yet to come, but his reign will be brief. The scarlet beast that was, but is no longer, is the eighth king. He is like the other seven, and he, too, is headed for destruction.””
Revelation‬ ‭17:7, 9-11‬ ‭NLT

The angel confesses to John that there is a mystery involved in the vision of heads and horns, the woman, beasts and kings. The angel, as he tried to explain what was going to happen, said “a mind with understanding” would be required. But his explanation was quite detailed. Many theologians and others have claimed to have the understanding the angel said would be required and have worked out the meaning of when these events will take place, at least to them. But in all of that, how much fruit has been produced for the Kingdom?

Although I say there is only limited value in trying to work out what it all means, from the perspective of 21st Century Planet Earth, the reality is that there is still a mystery here. Why wasn’t John given a clearer vision? Why wasn’t he told specifically who the main players were, and when the events described would happen? However, Jesus said that only God knows the exact time. So all those claiming to “understand” when it will happen are encroaching on God’s domain.

About the clarity of prophecy, what about some of the Old Testament prophesies about the first coming of Jesus? We see, with the benefit of hindsight, how spectacularly accurate they were. For example, Isaiah prophesied, as recorded in Isaiah 7:14, “All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).” Imagine how the people of Isaiah’s day would respond to the reality of a child being borne to a virgin? Laughable to them? But with the benefit of hindsight we marvel at its accuracy. Or consider Jesus’ death. We read the graphic description of the crucifixion experience in Psalm 22:14-15, “My life is poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax, melting within me. My strength has dried up like sunbaked clay. My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You have laid me in the dust and left me for dead.” So one day I’m sure that we will look back at John’s prophetic vision and finally understand how accurate it was.

Perhaps another reason for prophecies not being as accurate as we would like is the limitations of trying to articulate events that are to take place in the future with a limited vocabulary. For example, imagine a “prophecy” given in the nineteenth century about the coming of mobile phones. How would our Victorian forbears describe it, in the language, and with the vocabulary, of the times? Silly example I know, but hopefully it illustrates the point I am trying to make. 

But I’m sure the real reason for prophecies not being as clear as they could be is that God wants us to be dependent on Him. Through faith we trust Him with our future. Through faith we are assured that, even though He has given a glimpse, or hint, of what is to come, He wants us to embrace His love and provision for the situation and times in which we live. That’s good enough for me! And we pilgrims respond with our praise, worship and gratitude.

Dear Father God. You are our loving Heavenly Father. You are always available for us to come and worship at Your throne, accepted and loved. How grateful we are. Amen.

Ten Kings

Posted on by korgrocker

“The beast you saw was once alive but isn’t now. And yet he will soon come up out of the bottomless pit and go to eternal destruction. And the people who belong to this world, whose names were not written in the Book of Life before the world was made, will be amazed at the reappearance of this beast who had died.”
“The ten horns of the beast are ten kings who have not yet risen to power. They will be appointed to their kingdoms for one brief moment to reign with the beast. They will all agree to give him their power and authority. Together they will go to war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will defeat them because he is Lord of all Lords and King of all kings. And his called and chosen and faithful ones will be with him.
Revelation‬ ‭17:8, 12-14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It appears that, in John’s vision, the beast wearing the scarlet cloak somehow died and was cast into the “bottomless pit”. But the angel informed John that this beast would soon be resurrected, and, although his time would be short and he would soon end up in “eternal destruction”, he would dazzle the followers of the “great prostitute” when he reappeared. There’s nothing like a supernatural experience to rally the followers of a religion – perhaps membership of the devil’s worship cult, the “great prostitute”, was cooling off a bit. But note that it was only those who were not God’s people, those whose names could not be found in the Book of Life, who were taken in by this evil deception. The resurrection of Jesus was, and is, pivotal to our faith. But it is just like the devil to counterfeit the ways and works of God, to try to fool his followers into believing that he could be resurrected as well. But thankfully not for long.

The beast had ten horns, representing ten kings, who had yet to reign on earth. Some scholars have tried to relate these kings to the rulers of kingdoms or nations already passed, but John’s narrative seems to suggest that they will be reigning with the beast and will make war against the Lamb, Jesus Himself. And on the victory side, will be Jesus’ “called and chosen and faithful ones”. So there is another battle coming, and we, or our Christian descendants, may be numbered with the forces of the Lamb. As I have said before, it is only of limited value to try to work out, with the insufficient information we have available, who the ten kings were, or will be. Instead, we pilgrims are encouraged to be ready for Jesus’ return. In Matthew 24:42-44 Jesus said, “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.” So we can be tempted to try and relate episodes in John’s vision to world events and draw conclusions, but Jesus was quite specific. The danger is that if we find a relationship between what is happening around us in the world and what John saw in his vision, we could become complacent and assume that Jesus’ second coming wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.  But that isn’t what Jesus taught. Because He could come at any time means we must be in a constant state of readiness. 

What does “being ready” mean? We must maintain our relationship with God through prayer, reading His Word, keeping short accounts with God through repentance, sharing our faith – the Bible is full of suitable and appropriate instructions to encourage us pilgrims in our walk towards our Promised Land, Heaven itself. Whether or not the End Times finally conclude before we die is of secondary importance. What matters is ultimately being with Jesus. Forever and ever, amen.

Dear Father God. We thank You for this glimpse of the devil’s tricks, preparing us for what is to come. We praise and worship You, the One who was, and is, and is to come. Amen.

The Seventh Plague

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. And a mighty shout came from the throne in the Temple, saying, “It is finished!” Then the thunder crashed and rolled, and lightning flashed. And a great earthquake struck—the worst since people were placed on the earth. The great city of Babylon split into three sections, and the cities of many nations fell into heaps of rubble. So God remembered all of Babylon’s sins, and he made her drink the cup that was filled with the wine of his fierce wrath. And every island disappeared, and all the mountains were levelled. There was a terrible hailstorm, and hailstones weighing as much as seventy-five pounds fell from the sky onto the people below. They cursed God because of the terrible plague of the hailstorm.”
Revelation‬ ‭16:17-21‬ ‭NLT‬‬

No details of the Armageddon war are included in Revelation 16. The narrative in John’s vision jumps to the seventh plague. But there are three words that have been heard before in another place, during another momentous event. “It is finished!” In our verses today, these words emanate from the very throne of God. In the form of a loud and triumphant shout. God has finally brought to an end worldly judgements.

We will remember the last time these words were uttered. Jesus died on the cross at Calvary after declaring probably what are the most profound words ever spoken. In John 19:30 we read, “When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit”. In the Matthew account of the moment of Jesus’ death we read, “At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart”. (Matthew 27:51). ‭But in the Revelation account the impact of “It is finished!” effectively preceded a reforming of the earth, in that there was a great earthquake of a severity never before seen. All the islands disappeared. Mountains were mountains no more. And hailstones weighing what the King James Version of the Bible calls a talent, a unit of weight equivalent to thirty two kilograms or thereabouts, fell from the sky. That is an extremely heavy lump of ice and it would do serious amounts of damage to property, crops, animals and, of course, people. No wonder God received some complaints in the form of curses levelled against Him! If only they had repented.

Babylon crops up again in these verses. It refers to the personification of all the wickedness and sins of the world’s population, past, present and future. John’s vision referred to Babylon as a place that included not just the “great city” but also “the cities of many nations“. And they were reduced to heaps of rubble. But there is more to come about Babylon in John’s vision, recorded in Revelation 17 and 18, which we have yet to consider.

To us pilgrims we can only breathe a collective sigh of relief after reading these verses. The difficulties facing human beings in those days doesn’t bear thinking about. What a narrow escape we have had from disaster. Imagine what would have happened if we had failed to accept God’s invitation of grace when we did? Of course, we might have passed on before all these plagues had finally been dispensed on earth and its population, but we would not have escaped the judgement to come. 

When I have shared these scenes from Revelation with people I meet, a common response is, “How do you know that there is a life after we die, after all, no-one has ever returned to tell us what will happen, if anything”? Many people believe that once death overtakes us, there will be just blackness. Nothing else. Some people suggest that the death experience is like falling asleep but never waking up. Eternal sleep. But we pilgrims, through our faith, believe differently. Hebrews 11:1 reads, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see“. We hope for a future, eternal life, in God’s presence. And our faith assures us that that will be the case. Through our belief and faith in the rightness of God’s Word, we believe what He has promised. Hebrews 11:13 reads, “All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth“. As we plod along the paths of life, pilgrims together, we see in the distance our promised land. And one day we will get there and receive the fruit of that promise.

Dear Lord. Thank You for Your assurance that You are making a place in Heaven where we can join You. You said it. We believe it. We worship You today. Amen.

Armageddon

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great Euphrates River, and it dried up so that the kings from the east could march their armies toward the west without hindrance. And I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs leap from the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. They are demonic spirits who work miracles and go out to all the rulers of the world to gather them for battle against the Lord on that great judgment day of God the Almighty. “Look, I will come as unexpectedly as a thief! Blessed are all who are watching for me, who keep their clothing ready so they will not have to walk around naked and ashamed.” And the demonic spirits gathered all the rulers and their armies to a place with the Hebrew name Armageddon.”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭16:12-16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

John’s vision describes a scene with some key features. We have the Euphrates River, an effective boundary to the movement of troops and equipment from East to West. Three frogs, representing evil spirits, emerging from the devilish leaders at that time, and they, by their dark and evil trickery, deceiving other world leaders into thinking they could join together and defeat God Himself. Psalm 2:2-3 describes their thinking, “The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one. “Let us break their chains,” they cry, “and free ourselves from slavery to God””. If only they had read the next bit, “But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury. For the Lord declares, “I have placed my chosen king on the throne in Jerusalem, on my holy mountain.”” (Psalm 2:4-6). But in their arrogance the earthly rulers and their armies were confident that they would win.

The word “Armageddon” has come to mean two things. It is believed to be a physical place located in Northern Israel, on the site of the ancient town of Megiddo, which only exists as a mound today. But the word has also come to mean the ultimate battle of destruction, catastrophic for the human race.

So all the worldly forces mobilised by the “ dragon, the beast, and the false prophet” come together on the plain in Israel ready to take on God’s chosen King in Jerusalem. Their fate is assured, but God gives the armies and their rulers one last chance to pull back. Again from Psalm 2, the last verse reads, “Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities— for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!” We know what happens as John’s vision unfolds in the next verses in Revelation 16.

In the middle of these verses today, Jesus encourages His followers to be ready for His return, to avoid being shamed otherwise. Jesus taught about readiness in the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25. We truly don’t know when He will come again but it could be anytime. In the next hour or in one hundred years time. It may occur in our lifetimes, it may not, but the temptation is to think it won’t, and we therefore can behave like the five foolish virgins in Jesus’ parable. So instead we pilgrims live our lives in a state of readiness, with the expectation that Jesus really is coming soon. But we also plan accordingly in case He is delayed, making sure we are faithful in doing what He has asked us to do. 

We pilgrims can only think of the cataclysmic Armageddon event with a shudder. We pray that these days really will be cut short. And we pray for our loved ones, our friends and families, that they will come to know the love and grace of our Heavenly father before it is too late.

Dear Father God. We thank You for this season of grace, in which You have held back the forces of darkness. Please help us to be diligent in seeking You and being obedient to Your ways. And we pray for our families and friends, that they too will embrace Your love that You make so freely available. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

‭‭

Water to Blood

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse. And everything in the sea died. Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs, and they became blood.”
Revelation‬ ‭16:3-4‬ ‭NLT

This is a disgusting thought. The blood inside a decomposing corpse decomposes and rots too. And that is how John saw the oceans of the world. Vast extents of rotting bodily fluids. The smell must have been atrocious. John also discerned that everything in the sea died as well. No more fish and plant life. The ways of commerce and fishing for food would have been destroyed at a stroke. The beast’s economy would have been destroyed. The world’s food supply eliminated. Oxygen required to sustain life much reduced, and reducing.

Earlier in our journey through Revelation, we found, “Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. One-third of the water in the sea became blood, one-third of all things living in the sea died, and one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed.” (‭‭Revelation‬ ‭8:8-9‬ ‭NLT). It is almost as though this plague was finishing the job started by the angel with the trumpet. Desperate times for the remaining people on Planet Earth.

Similarly, with the rivers and springs also turning to blood, the process started in Revelation 8:10-11 is completed. We read, “Then the third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from the sky, burning like a torch. It fell on one-third of the rivers and on the springs of water. The name of the star was Bitterness. It made one-third of the water bitter, and many people died from drinking the bitter water.” The bitterness of one third of the fresh water supplies was replaced by nothing but blood. For “water” read “blood”. Can you imagine it? Raining blood. Red snow and ice. What did people drink, being surrounded only by rotting, stinking, clotting, decomposing, blood? 

Do we take the references to blood literally, or do they instead have another meaning? Does the water everywhere really become like “the blood of a corpse” or blood itself, or is there some other meaning? We don’t know. Suffice to say, that the peoples on earth were at the end. That is, of course, unless they repented of their wickedness and sin, and turned to God.

In Exodus 7 we read about how Moses turned the Nile and all the water supplies in Egypt into blood, but even this miraculous sign failed to change Pharaoh’s resolve. The Egyptians were able to find fresh water by digging holes alongside the banks of the Nile. But in these End Times, that option would have been unavailable. Digging holes would have just exposed more blood.

In our society today, in 21st Century UK, or wherever we are, there is much to mourn. Not just the passing of our Queen, but also the rising cost of living. The sky-high energy prices. And we mourn the deterioration of the social values that we have enjoyed for so long. We mourn the breakdown of family life, the waiting lists for our medical facilities, the lack of dentists – the list seems to be endless. But all these things are trivial compared to what it would have been like living in the times of the beast. Faced with a catastrophic economic melt down, lack of food and acute difficulties finding water to drink, the remaining populations in these last days would have been gripped by fear, driven by panic, with scenes too desperate and graphic to imagine. 

In our times, many of us have a tendency to do a lot of moaning. When life seems hard, when depression seems to be just round the corner. When we lack the means to pay bills, or the car breaks down or whatever challenge we are facing into, we need to remind ourselves of what life will be like in the Last Days. In Philippians 4:12-13, we read about the Apostle Paul’s attitudes to life. “I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength“. In this season of grace, God is holding the world order together. Yes, there are wars and economic problems. Yes, diseases and medical challenges abound. But in the Last Days, His grace will have run its course and He will loosen His grip on the world, allowing the forces of darkness to be unleashed on whoever is still alive on earth. The beast has emerged, preceding a time of an outpouring of God’s final judgements. Like Paul, in this life we must learn “the secret of living in every situation”, grateful for God’s love and grace, and all that He has done for us. And in our work-a-day lives, we continually express our thanks to our wonderful Heavenly Dad, regardless of our circumstances. 

Dear Father God. How wonderful You are. We are so grateful for Your mercy and grace. Please help us to keep a balanced and thankful attitude for all You have done, and will still do, in our lives. Amen.